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Ceratodon purpureus
Also called Redshank, Redshank [moss], Fire Moss
Ceratodon purpureus is a dioicous moss with a color ranging from yellow-green to red. The height amounts to 3 centimeters. It is found worldwide, mainly in urban areas and next to roads on dry sand soils. It can grow in a very wide variety of habitats, from polluted highway shoulders and mine tailings to areas recently denuded by wildfire to the bright slopes of Antarctica. Its common names include fire moss, redshank, purple forkmoss, ceratodon moss, and purple horn toothed moss.
Fire moss likely occurs in every country but is possibly replaced by closely related taxa in tropical latitudes. It is widespread throughout Canada, where it occurs in every province and territory. It occurs in every state in the United States.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Ceratodon purpureus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
