Grimmia brittoniae R.S. Williams (1900:316)
Britton's dry rock moss, Britton's black rock moss
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Sometimes considered a synonym of G. funalis (Muñoz, 2000; Muñoz & Pando, 2000; Maier, 2010), but generally accepted (e.g. Lawton, 1971, 1999; Greven & Spribille, 1999; Brinda & Atwood, 2026; NatureServe, 2026; WFO, 2026)
Conservation Status
Globally Rediscovered (Santana de Lima, 2026)
Last record: 26 September 1893 (Tropicos, 2026)
Rediscovered on: 26 July 1960 (Santana de Lima, 2026 [as 1960]; Tropicos, 2026 [date only])
Distribution & Habitat
Idaho & Montana (Flathead, Lincoln and Sanders Counties), USA
Anatomy & Morphology
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Media
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?verifiable=true&taxon_id=163380
References
Original scientific description:
Williams, Robert S. (1900). Two new species of Grimmia from Montana. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 27(6): 316-317.
Other references:
Anderson, L. E., Crum, H. A. and Buck, W. R. (1990). List of the mosses of North America north of Mexico. The Bryologist 93(4): 448-499.
Brinda, John C. and Atwood, John J. (eds.). (2026). The Bryophyte Nomenclator, 14 Jul 2026. Available at: https://www.bryonames.org/ [Accessed on 17 August 2026]
Buck, W. R. and Goffinet, B. (2024). A new checklist of the mosses of the continental United States and Canada. Bryologist 127(4): 484-549.
Elliot, J. C. (1993). Second checklist of Montana mosses. Unpublished report. U.S. Forest Service, Region 1. Missoula, MT. 45 pp.
Elliott, J. C. and Pipp, A. K. (2020). A Checklist of Montana Mosses (1880-2018). Updated 3 January. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, Montana. 73 pp.
Eversman, S. and Sharp, A. J. (1980). First checklist of Montana mosses. Proc. Montana Acad. Sci. 39: 12-24.
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). (2007). Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 27. Bryophytes: Mosses, Part 1. Oxford University Press, New York. xxi + 713 pp.
Greven, Henk C. (2003). Grimmias of the World. Leiden, Netherlands: Backhuys Publishing. 247 pp
Greven, Henk C. and Spribille, Toby. (1999). Grimmia brittoniae, a rare moss endemic to northwestern Montana. The Bryologist 102(1): 116-118. https://doi.org/10.2307/3244471
Grout, A. J. (1933-1940). Moss Flora of North America 2: 1-284. Author, Newfane, Vermont.
Lawton, Elva E. (1971a). Moss Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Nichinan, Miyazaki, Japan: The Hattori Botanical Laboratory. i-xiii, 362 pages + 195 full-page plates. [pp. 125-126, pl. 58; hardcover]
Lawton, Elva E. (1971b). Keys for the Identification of the Mosses on the Pacific Northwest. Reprinted from 'Moss Flora of the Pacific Northwest'. Published as Supplement No. 2 of the Journal of the Hattori Botanical Laboratory. Nichinan, Miyazaki, Japan. 66 pp.
Lawton, Elva E. (1999). Moss Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Nichinan, Miyazaki, Japan: The Hattori Botanical Laboratory. i-xiv, 389 pages + 195 full-page plates. [p. 120, 121, 125-126; softcover]
Maier, E. (2010). The genus Grimmia Hedw. (Grimmiaceae, Bryophyta)—A morphological-anatomical study. Boissiera 63: 1-377.
Montana Natural Heritage Program. (2017). Britton’s Dry Rock Moss (Grimmia brittoniae) predicted suitable habitat models created on October 25, 2017. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, MT. 11 pp.
Montana State Library. (2026). Britton's Dry Rock Moss — Grimmia brittoniae. Montana Field Guide. Montana Natural Heritage Program. Retrieved on August 17, 2026, from https://FieldGuide.mt.gov/speciesDetail.aspx?elcode=NBMUS320A0
Muñoz, J. (2000). New synonyms in Grimmia (Grimmiaceae). J. Bryol. 22: 99-102.
Muñoz, J. and Pando, F. (2000). A world synopsis of the genus Grimmia (Musci, Grimmiaceae). Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 83: [i-viii] + 1-133.
Santana de Lima, Isabele Souza. (2026). The world’s rediscovered mosses / Världens återupptäckta mossor. Bachelor's thesis, Department of Environmental and Life Sciences, Karlstad University. 15 pp.
Tropicos. (2026). Tropicos.org. Missouri Botanical Garden. 17 August 2026 <https://tropicos.org/name/35146547>
WFO. (2026). Grimmia brittoniae R.S.Williams. Published on the Internet. Available at: https://www.worldfloraonline.org/taxon/wfo-0001173368 [Accessed on 17 August 2026]
Williams, R. S. (1902). A preliminary list of Montana mosses. Bulletin of the New York Botanical Garden 2: 351-380.