by Nathaniel Lord Britton & Addison Brown

“ Plants small, with simple or 1-2-forked horizontal prostrate or slightly arched slender, often lax, leafy stems; peduncles 3”-21⁄2” long, arising directly from the creeping stem, terminated by a slender spike 1⁄2’-11⁄2’ long, or the spike rarely subsessile; leaves of the stem linear-lanceolate, acute, mostly entire, curved upward, those of the peduncle more slender, spreading; sporophyls similar to the sterile leaves but wider at the base (linear-deltoid) , spreading, entire or sometimes toothed just above the base. ”

“ Stems rising 2’-4’ from a curved or decumbent base, 1-3 times dichotomous, the branches forming a rather close tuft of densely leafy vertical stems; leaves spreading or somewhat deflexed, entire or minutely denticulate, arranged in alternating series of longer and shorter, the former linear to linear-lanceolate, slightly broader above the middle, alternate, the latter distinctly broadest at the base, gradually tapering to an acuminate apex, and more often bearing the sporanges; plant often gemmiparous. ”

“ Sporanges subglobose. •Sporophyls linear-deltoid, mostly entire; plants small.style="vertical-align:bottom; text-align:right; font-size:90%"|4.L. inundatum. •Sporophyls linear to lanceolate from a broader base; plants larger. •Peduncles slender, the leaves incurved and mostly appressed; spikes slender, the sporophyls less than 3" long, abruptly subulate, incurved.style="vertical-align:bottom ”