New York Scalewort

Frullania eboracensis

New York Scalewort forms a low, spreading mat of irregularly branched leafy stems. It's herbaceous and evergreen.
New York Scalewort - Frullania eboracensis A leafy liverwort that forms a low-spreading mat of irregularly branched, leafy stems. The mat of leafy stems clings tightly to the underlying surface. The individual leafy stems are only 1 mm across and were reddish brown, which is their usual color during the winter. Along the stems, there are alternate leaves that partially overlap each other. The lower lobes of the leaves can store water, which enables these miniature plants to withstand dry spells for a long period of time. Habitat: Hardwood https://www.jungledragon.com/image/77581/new_york_scalewort_-_frullania_eboracensis.html Frullania eboracensis,Geotagged,New York Scalewort,United States,Winter

Appearance

It forms a low, spreading mat of irregularly branched, leafy stems. The mat of leafy stems clings tightly to the underlying surface, and the mats can range in size from 0.5-10cm across. The individual leafy stems are only 1 mm across and are reddish brown during the winter and dark green/reddish green in the summer. Along the stems, there are alternate leaves that partially overlap each other.
New York Scalewort - Frullania eboracensis Even in death, this tree is fulfilling a purpose. It was full of holes made by insects, and was being excavated by ants. Plus, it had scalewort, fungi, and slime molds growing on it! Habitat: mixed forest Frullania eboracensis,Geotagged,New York Scalewort,United States,Winter

Naming

The family name Jubulaceae is often sometimes referred to as Frullaniaceae.
New York Scalewort - Frullania eboracensis Habitat: Growing on a hardwood tree; deciduous forest Frullania,Frullania eboracensis,Geotagged,New York Scalewort,Spring,United States,scalewort

Distribution

New York Scalewort is widely distributed in eastern North America and areas of southern Canada.
New York Scalewort A leafy liverwort that forms a low-spreading mat of irregularly branched, leafy stems. The mat of leafy stems clings tightly to the underlying surface, and the mat pictured was approximately 4cm tall. The individual leafy stems are only 1 mm across and were reddish brown, which is their usual color during the winter. Along the stems, there are alternate leaves that partially overlap each other. The lower lobes of the leaves can store water, which enables these miniature plants to withstand dry spells for a long period of time. For some reason, I've never paid much attention to these before even though I see them everywhere-they look like little snowflakes or roots spreading on tree trunks, but their structure is quite amazing, especially up-close! Frullania eboracensis,Geotagged,New York Scalewort,United States,Winter,liverwort

Behavior

It has greater tolerance to bright sunlight and dry heat than most liverworts. This may be due to the fact that the lower lobes of the leaves can store water, which enables these miniature plants to withstand dry spells for a long period of time.
New York Scalewort A leafy liverwort that forms a low-spreading mat of irregularly branched, leafy stems. The mat of leafy stems clings tightly to the underlying surface, and the mat pictured was approximately 4cm tall. The individual leafy stems are only 1 mm across and were reddish brown, which is their usual color during the winter. Along the stems, there are alternate leaves that partially overlap each other. The lower lobes of the leaves can store water, which enables these miniature plants to withstand dry spells for a long period of time. Frullania eboracensis,Geotagged,New York Scalewort,United States,Winter,liverwort

Habitat

It seems to prefer natural areas with mature trees. It grows on wood - bark, roots, planks, logs, etc.

References:

Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.

https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=FREB
Taxonomy
KingdomPlantae
DivisionMarchantiophyta
ClassMarchantiopsida
OrderJungermanniales
FamilyJubulaceae
GenusFrullania
SpeciesFrullania eboracensis
Photographed in
United States of America