Atrichum is a genus of mosses in the family Polytrichaceae, order Polytrichales, within the phylum Bryophyta (true mosses). First described by the French botanist Ambroise Marie François Joseph Palisot de Beauvois, the genus is cosmopolitan in distribution, with species occurring across temperate and boreal regions of every continent. Like other members of Polytrichaceae, Atrichum mosses are acrocarpous — they produce their spore capsules at the tips of upright shoots — and typically form dense, low-growing patches on moist soils in woodlands, streamsides, and disturbed ground. The genus contains a small number of accepted species; GBIF recognises five, including the widespread Atrichum undulatum (common smoothcap or Catherine's moss), Atrichum angustatum, and Atrichum tenellum.
Taxonomy Notes
Atrichum was first described by Ambroise Marie François Joseph Palisot de Beauvois. It is placed in the family Polytrichaceae, order Polytrichales, class Polytrichopsida, within the phylum Bryophyta. GBIF currently recognises five accepted species in the genus.
Distribution
Atrichum has a cosmopolitan distribution, with species recorded across temperate and boreal regions worldwide. Species are typically found on moist, humus-rich soils in woodlands, along streamsides, and on disturbed or shaded ground.
