English name: Whitish feather-moss
A distinctive pleurocarpous moss with pale, whitish or yellowish green shoots that are sparsely branched. The long, slender shoots with adpressed and closely overlapping leaves have a string-like appearance. The leaves are egg-shaped with a long, fine tip that spreads slightly outwards.
In Scotland, Brachythecium albicans has a mainly coastal and lowland distribution where it is found on sandy or gravelly, well-drained, base-poor soils such as in coastal dunes, by waysides and on waste ground. BBS distribution map
Look out for Ceratodon purpureus, Hypnum jutlandicum and Polytrichum piliferum nearby.
Confusion species: Brachythecium rutabulum and Cirriphyllum piliferum
scottishlichens.co.uk 