Bazzania wooroonooran Meagher

Bazzania wooroonooran Meagher (Fig. 13 H-K) Nova Hedwigia 100 (3-4): 549 (Meagher 2015). — Type: Australia, Bellenden Ker Range; 3.VII.1986; Scott s.n.; holo-, MELU-116; not seen. MATERIAL EXAMINED. — New Caledonia • South Province, Païta, Mt Humboldt, ascent from the hut to the summit; c. 1600 m; epiphytic; 31.VIII.2003; F. Müller NC773 (DRE). DISTRIBUTION IN NEW CALEDONIA. — Hitherto known from a single collection in South Province at the highest elevations. TOTAL RANGE. — Australia (Queensland), New Caledonia. DESCRIPTION Plants Small, rigid; moist shoots 1.5 mm wide, 2 mm when flattened, stems relatively strong, 0.35 mm wide; terminal branching uncommon in the specimen seen, distant, with long pseudo-dichotomous branches, ventral-intercalary branches usually flagelliform, sometimes normal leaved. Leaves Imbricate, incurved when moist, more strongly deflexed when dry, the auriculate dorsal bases overlaying the stem, leaves spreading at right angle when flattened, 1.30-1.55 mm long, strongly asymmetrically ovate-cordate, more strongly narrowed below the apices than above the bases, 0.15-0.20 mm vs. 0.85-0.90 mm, length to width ratio 1.4-1.8; cuticle smooth, margins entire, dorsal margin strongly arched, auriculate, ventral margin concave, more rarely straight; apices usually bifid, rarely entire to crenulate, lobes erect, narrowly triangular to linear, typically 3-5 rounded cells long. Cell Areolation homogeneous, cell size and trigones slowly becoming larger to the leaf bases, cells with strongly thickened walls inter - rupted by a single pit on each side and fused into huge trigones at the cell angles, median cells rounded to oval, c. 30 µm wide, 30-45 µm long, marginal cells a little smaller, with thicker free walls; basal cells 40-50 µm wide, 50-65 µm long. Underleaves Positioned near the leaf bases on one side of the stem and free on both sides, spreading with recurved apices; underleaves rounded, slightly wider than long, 0.30-0.35 mm long, 0.40 mm wide, as wide as the stem or hardly more; apices entire or emarginate; cells as in the leaves. Gynoecia Terminal on short ventral-intercalary branches, outer bracts rounded to ovate, shortly bifid, inner bracts ovate-lanceolate, deeply bifid, the margins and apices sparsely and shortly ciliate-laciniate or crenulate, perianth (according to F. Müller in Thouvenot et al. 2018): 3.7-4.1 mm long, 0.8-0.9 mm wide, tubular, 3-sided, apices constricted, long ciliate, cilia 250-400 µm long (Description after the New Caledonian specimen). NOTES The discovery of this rare species in New Caledonia is interesting in many ways. Besides the similarity of the bryophyte floras between Queensland and New Caledonia, the rarity of their localities restricted to the highest mountains, reflects the importance of the long-distance dispersal mechanisms, together with habitat availabilities (Gradstein 2018). While most Bazzania species are usually in vegetative condition, both known populations of B. wooroonooran have many gynoecia. Also interesting is the leaf areolation that looks like that of B. deplanchei and some other New Caledonian liverworts (see under the latter).