Synonymy

Philonotis association Smith 1911 p.p.; Philonotis-Saxifraga stellaris bryophyte flush Pearsall 1950; Philonoto-Saxifragetum stellaris sensu McVean & Ratcliffe 1962, Eddy et al. 1969, Birks 1973; Poa annua-Montia fontana nodum Eddy et al. 1969; Philonotis fontana-Saxifraga nodum Edgell 1969; Philonotis flushes Meek 1976; Philonotis springs Ferreira 1978; Philonotis-Chrysosplenium-Poa subcaerulea hanging mats Ferreira 1978; Chrysosplenium-Montia springs Ferreira 1978; Scapania undulata-Philonotis fontana nodum Huntley 1979; Montio-Philonotidetum fontanae (Bük & Tüxen in Bük 1942) Birse 1980; Nardia compressa Community Birse 1980 p.p.

Constant species

Saxifraga stellaris, Philonotis fontana.

Rare species

Alopecurus alpinus, Cerastium cerastoides, Epilobium alsinifolium, Koenigia islandica, Myosotis stolonifera, Phleum alpinum, Sedum villosum, Bryum schleicheri var. latifolium, B. weigelii, Oncophorus virens, Pohlia ludwigii, P. wahlenbergii var. glacialis, Splachnum vasculosum, Scapania paludosa, Tritomaria polita.

Physiognomy

The Philonoto-Saxifragetum stellaris comprises bryophyte-dominated springs, flushes and rills of very striking appearance. Philonotis fontana is the usual dominant, its fresh-green picking out stands of the community from a distance, but often abundant too are Dicranella palustris, luxuriant and golden-green, and Scapania undulata, forming patches which range from vivid-green to reddish-purple (those at the latter extreme once being classified as S. dentata, as in McVean & Ratcliffe's (1962) samples). The cover is sometimes broken by patches of wet soil, but often densely swollen into hummocks or plush mats or forming hanging carpets over steep dripping ground. Less consistent through the community as a whole, but also able to show local prominence, catching the eye as splashes of pink, bronze or deep green, are Sphagnum auriculatum, Scapania uliginosa, Calliergon sarmentosum, Drepanocladus exannulatus, D. fluitans and, not very frequent overall but rather characteristic of this vegetation, Jungermannia exsertifolia. Bryum pseudotriquetrum is also quite common and patchily abundant but it is not so consistent here as in more base-poor springs and Cratoneuron commutatum and C.filicinum, typical dominants in such situations, are noticeably scarce.

Other bryophytes found occasionally at generally low covers include Nardia scalaris and N. compressa, the latter especially where the community occurs around bouldery rills, Polytrichum commune, Calliergon cuspidatum, C. stramineum, Chiloscyphus polyanthos, C. pallescens, Brachythecium rivulare, B. plumosum, Rhizomnium punctatum, Sphagnum squarrosum, Pellia epiphylla and Aneura pinguis. Then, among rarer taxa, the vegetation provides a locus for Oncophorus virens, Bryum weigelii, B. schleicheri var. latifolium, Scapania paludosa and Tritomariapolita (Eddy et al. 1969, Birks 1973, Birse 1980).