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Selaginella tortipila
Selaginella tortipila is a species in the family Selaginellaceae commonly known as twistedhiar spikemoss. It is mainly found in southeastern United States in states like North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama, specifically in the region of Appalachian mountains and piedmont. S. tortipila is a small and green plant which grows on rocky outcrops and granitic surfaces. Historically, there has been a long debate over whether S. tortipila and its closely relative Selaginella sherwoodii with some scientist claiming that taxonomically they are the same species. Recently, some classified S. sherwoodii as an ecological form of S. tortipila. The naming of S. tortipila is retraced back in 1865 by A. Braun and the description of S. sherwoodii by Lucien Underwood in 1902.
Selaginella tortipila is mainly encountered on exposed granite and granite-gneiss rock. It colonizes very high elevations ranging from 1,500 to 4,500 ft (460 to 1,370 m). In such regions, temperature is highly variable and nutrients and water are scarce. The regions with confirmed presence of S. tortipila are:
Meadow spikemoss · Sand spikemoss · Arizona spikemoss · Bluish spikemoss · Selaginella australiensis · Selaginella bifida · Selaginella biformis · Bushy spikemoss · Selaginella brisbanensis · Selaginella bryopteris · Selaginella carinata · Selaginella ciliaris
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Selaginella tortipila by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
