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The Lejeuneaceae is a one of the largest families of liverworts
worldwide with over 1000 species, peaking in diversity in tropical
and subtropical regions. In Tasmania, the family is represented by
20 species.
Members of the Lejeuneaceae are typically very minute and inconspicuous
and
are found in very wet forests and rainforests. They are often found
growing on the leaves of other plants
(epiphyllous), the shoots of mosses (epimuscicolous), on the bark of trees and also
threading amongst other bryophytes.
High power magnification of the leaf lobe, leaf insertion to
stem, lobule structure and oil body characters are needed to
differentiate genera.
The key works best with fresh material as oil body structure can
be quite diagnostic for some genera.
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