# Is this what i think it is? need HELP



## khemo

Hi guys

I need help identifying these plants:

I think this may be willow moss. What do you guys think?










Also what java fern is this? i'm thinking it may be philippine or narrow leaf, what do you guys think?










Thanks guys...appreciate it


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## Cavan Allen

Closeup of moss? 

The second isn't 'Philippine' or narrow. Some Java fern just grows a bit narrower, sometimes because of conditions and sometimes because of its genetic makeup. Have you seen any sori?


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## miremonster

The moss looks like Leptodictyum riparium from populations growing in waters in Germany and looking different to the well known "Stringy moss". 

A moss looking like this is sold in Germany under the name "Drepanocladus sp. aduncus". But it has nothing to do with the real Drepanocladus aduncus.

The leaves of L. riparium have a distinct midrib that doesn't reach the leaf tip.
Leaves of Fontinalis ("willow m.") are arranged in 3 distinct rows along the stem, and lack a midrib (but are often folded in the middle).


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## khemo

Thanks for your replies guys. Here's more pictures of the moss:










This is the closest i can get









This moss was attached to some of the moss i got from a friend. We both have no idea what it is.

Hope someone can identify it.


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## miremonster

Thank You for the closeups!

For comparison, pics of wild growing Leptodictyum riparium, a common water moss in Germany (not the Stringy moss! I don't know if Stringy m. is correctly identified as L. riparium). I've ID it using a moss flora (Frahm & Frey).
From the river Leine, Germany, You can see the midrib in some of the leaves:

















In a cemetery water reservoir in Berlin:


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## khemo

thanks miremonster, very much appreciated. Can you please explain what you mean by midrib? I'm not sure what this term refers to.

thanks


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## miremonster

Hello khemo, 
the midrib is the thicker stripe in a single moss leaf. It's better visible with a magnifier. OK, hardly visible in my pics...
Some mosses lack a midrib or have 2 short ribs in the base of the leaf, e.g. Java moss.

Leptodictyum riparium is widespread and frequent in the northern hemisphere and very variable but there are some other Leptodictyum species and I don't know how they differ. There are also more similar genera, e.g. Amblystegium (Leptodictyum is counted among Amblystegium by some authors, too).


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## khemo

Thanks miremonster

Can you describe the growth patterns of the L. riparium that you have? Mine tend to grow horizontal (not vertical like the better know stringy moss) with a lot of branching similar to that of christmas moss. Is this growth typical of this moss?


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## miremonster

Hello khemo, 
my Leptodictyum riparium has the same growth pattern! It grows horizontal too, and the branching seems to depend on the lighting. In my tank it was sparsely branched, but outdoors it is often intensively branched (see my last photo). In the nature it creeps often on stone or wood. 

I have no idea what species the upright growing "stringy moss" really belongs to. E.g. Drepanocladus aduncus has a similar growth pattern, but different leaves.


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