Spathularia flavida

Farr et al. (1989) move Spathularia velutipes to Spathulariopsis velutipes, but since this is the only species of Spathulariopsis that they recognize, it is unknown whether flavida should also be moved.

Widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere; reported from North America, Europe, and Asia. Relatively abundant. Occurs in a variety of habitats associated with forested areas.

This name has been applied to specimens from many north temperate areas including western and eastern North America, Europe, and Japan. It is very widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, but little information is available about it from Asia.

What has passed as this species is probably a species complex. This name has been applied to specimens from many north temperate areas. It is reported as rare from Denmark, present in Iceland, and occasional to rare in Norway , Sweden, and Finland (Hansen et al. 2000). Other reports include Japan (Imazeki et al.1988), uncommon in Britain (Dennis 1978), and uncommon in Switzerland (Breitenbach and Kranzlin 1981). Mains (1955) reported one variety or another of this species from Idaho, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Washington, and Ontario and Nova Scotia; it is also reported from British Columbia (Callan et al. n.d.) and Maine, Vermont, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Quebec in North America as well as France, Bohemia, and Czechslovakia (Farr et al. n.d.). Numerous collections from the Pacific Northwest and some from Arizona are deposited at MICH (Fogel n.d.). Additional material from the PNW is deposited at OSC (n.d.). These identifications have not been verified; I suspect with are dealing with a species complex here. About 43 collections are mentioned in ISMS from the range of the northern spotted owl.

This species is widely distributed in coniferous and deciduous/coniferous forests of the Northern Hemisphere. Thus events and activities that reduce the forested area or change the forest (change humidity at soil level, change species mix, change light patterns) could reduce the vigor of this species or eliminate it from affected areas. Its ecological amplitude, however, is greater than that of many species on the ROD list such as Cudonia montana.