Catherine's Moss

Around this time of the year I always start noticing the bryophytes - mosses and liverworts. Interesting fungi are hard to find and the normally overlooked mosses somehow become interesting in the low slanting light. When you kneel down to look closely (usually in the mud!) some of them look spectacular, especially if they are carrying the spore-producing capsules. This species, Catherine's Moss or Atrichum undulatum, is very common, but it has the most beautiful curved capsules with long beaks...like a cluster of herons.