Stem sparingly or freely irregularly, dichotomously or fasciculately branched, sometimes filiform and almost unbranched, absent short, lateral tuft-like branchlets. Leaves lingulate, elliptic, broadly ovate, ovate- or oblong-lanceolate to broadly or occasionally narrowly lanceolate; margins 1–2(–4)-stratose, recurved, reflexed, incurved or plane on both sides; apices narrowly to broadly rounded-obtuse or long acuminate to acute, muticous or very rarely shortly hyaline-tipped, entire or sharply to bluntly, remotely irregularly toothed, erose-dentate, sinuate to cristate in the upper 1/5–1/4; costa strong and broad, ceasing in mid leaf to subpercurrent, in transverse-section 2–4-stratose in the distal and medial parts, weakly to strongly convex, reniform, crescent-shaped to semi-terete abaxially, flat or convex on the adaxial side, in the basal part 3–6(–7)-layered, situated at the bottom of a shallow or deeper, usually wide-angled groove, lunate, reniform or rectangular and distinctly flattened, strongly convex on the abaxial side; basal marginal laminal cells not differentiated; distal laminal cells 1- to variously 2-stratose, irregularly rounded-quadrate, subquadrate, oval to rounded-hexagonal, strongly papillose to smooth, straight-walled in the distal part.

Distribution

North America, South America (Colombia), Eurasia, n Africa, Atlantic Islands (Azores, Canary Islands, Iceland, Madeira).

Discussion

Species 9 (6 in the flora).

Members of sect. Codriophorus are recognized by their lingulate, broadly ovate to ovate- or oblong-lanceolate leaves, isodiametric and straight-walled distal laminal cells, and costa that is broad and robust, usually over 100 µm wide at the base. The costa is situated in a shallow, wide-angled groove and is mostly 2–4-stratose in the distal and medial parts, 3–6(–7)-stratose in the basal part, and anatomically strongly differentiated.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

Codriophorus acicularis, Codriophorus aduncoides, Codriophorus depressus, Codriophorus mollis, Codriophorus norrisii, Codriophorus ryszardii

Key

1	Laminal cells smooth or very slightly papillose on young leaves; leaf margins entire or with a few irregular teeth at the apex.	Codriophorus depressus
1	Laminal cells distinctly papillose; leaf margins remotely irregularly toothed, erose-dentate, sinuate to cristate in the distal 1/5-1/4, if entire then broadly rounded-obtuse	> 2
2	Leaves lanceolate; apex irregularly bluntly erose-dentate; costa markedly convex and crescent-shaped abaxially.	Codriophorus ryszardii
2	Leaves lingulate, elliptical to broadly ovate or ovate-lanceolate; apex broadly rounded-obtuse to acute, irregularly dentate to entire	> 3
3	Costa subpercurrent, entire and only shortly forked at the tip	> 4
3	Costa extending 1/2-3/4 way up the leaf, distinctly spurred	> 5
4	Laminal cells strongly papillose, 1- or very rarely 2-stratose; leaves unbordered.	Codriophorus acicularis
4	Laminal cells indistinctly papillose over the cell walls, always variously 2-stratose in the distal part; leaves distinctly bordered with fleshy and broad limbidia.	Codriophorus norrisii
5	Leaf apex broadly rounded, flat to subcucullate, always entire or sometimes sinuate to remotely bluntly erose-dentate.	Codriophorus mollis
5	Leaf apex broadly rounded-obtuse to subacute, often tubular, strongly dentate or very rarely subentire.	Codriophorus aduncoides