Plants scattered or in loose to compact turfs, mostly yellowish green, sometimes reddish. Stems erect, to ca. 0.5 mm, sometimes seemingly absent; simple or branched by innovations; rhizoids at base, smooth. Leaves imbricate to spreading when dry, lanceolate to ovate, acute to subulate; margins plane, entire or serrate; costa subpercurrent to excurrent, sometimes weak or absent toward insertion and in lowermost leaves, medial laminal cells rhomboidal to short-rectangular, becoming longer toward the insertion, smooth. Specialized asexual reproduction unknown. Sexual condition autoicous or dioicous, cladocarpous; perichaetial leaves sometimes differentiated. Seta short, curved at apex, rarely ± erect. Capsule pendulous and laterally emergent, rarely erect and immersed, reddish at maturity, subglobose; annulus near midurn, of 1-2 rows of small cells, persistent; operculum obtuse to apiculate; peristome none. Calyptra conic-mitrate, entire at base or crenate-lobed. Spores globose to reniform, coarsely papillose to reticulate.

Species 6 (1 in the flora): North America, South America, Asia, Africa, Australia.