Apparently named after John Bartram (1699–1777), pioneer American botanist.

Monoicous or dioicous. Plants small to very robust, caespitose. Stems simple, sparingly branched near the base, or with rare subfloral innovations, variably tomentose. Rhizoids at least lightly papillose. Leaves not ranked, geniculate or spreading to erect on stems, sometimes curled or twisted when dry, linear-lanceolate or narrowed from an obovate hyaline sheathing base; apex acute; margin plane or revolute, at least the upper parts denticulate; costa strong, percurrent or short-excurrent; laminal cells rectangular, more elongate nearer the leaf base, sometimes with rows of quadrate basal marginal cells, papillose from prorate cell ends.

Capsules erect or suberect, globose to ovoid; operculum umbonate. Peristome absent or apparently single, sometimes double with a rudimentary endostome. Spores subglobose or reniform, papillose or verrucose

n = 8 (most species), but also records of n = 6, 12, 16, fide Ramsay (1974 pp. 317-318).

Bartramia, with approximately 72 species, occurs on soil or, rarely, on rocks in many habitats throughout the world; however, most tropical species are found only at high altitudes (Virtanen, 2000). Nine species are known from Australia; three species and one subspecies are endemic.

Bartramia Hedw., Sp. Musc. Frond. 164 (1801), nom. cons. 
Lectotype: B. halleriana Hedw., typ. cons.

Taxonomic synonyms

Glyphocarpa R.Br., Trans. Linn. Soc. London 12: 575 (1819).
Type: G. capensis R.Br.

The taxonomy of Bartramia has been in considerable flux for many years, with confusion surrounding several species groups. While there is a need for a worldwide revision of the genus, recent investigations using various morphological characters have begun to clarify the situation. Axillary hair types were found by Griffin & Buck (1989) to be diagnostic at the generic level. Using this character, in conjunction with others, there seems to be a clear grouping of the Australian Bartramia species into two groups, although further investigation is required to establish the exact affinities of the second (“Section Strictidium”) group. Magill (1987) foreshadowed this situation by transferring the South African B. afrostricta Müll.Hal. to synonymy under Anacolia breutelii (Müll.Hal.) Magill (treated here as B. breutelii Müll.Hal.). Further support is found in Fransén (2004b). However, there are difficulties in accommodating the group of related Australian species of Bartramia s. lat. within Anacolia Schimp. The broader concept of Bartramia is retained here pending further investigations. Bartramia was subdivided by Brotherus (1909) into 3 sections, and while these were used by Catcheside (1987), they have not been adopted in this treatment. Virtanen (2003) included only four species in his study, an insufficient number to elucidate infrageneric relationships. Fransén (2004a, b) retained the traditional sectional distinctions, with some discussion of their morphological features. Bartramia “stricta” was widely misapplied in Australia to the taxa segregated by Catcheside (1987) as B. afrostricta, B. nothostricta, B. pseudostricta and B. strictifolia.

Brotherus, V.F. (1909). Bartramia. Naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien I, 3: 635–641.

Catcheside, D.G. (1987). The genus Bartramia (Bartramiaceae) in Australia. Memoirs of the New York Botanical Garden 45: 618–626.

Fransén, R. (2004a). A taxonomic revision of extra-Neotropical Bartramia section Vaginella C.Müll. Lindbergia 29: 73–107.

Fransén, R. (2004b). A taxonomic revision of Bartramia Hedw. section Bartramia. Lindbergia 29: 113–122.

Griffin, D.G. & Buck, W.R. (1989). Taxonomic and phylogenetic studies on the Bartramiaceae. Bryologist 92: 268–280.

Magill, R.E. (1987). Flora of Southern Africa: Bryophyta, Part 1 Mosses, Fascicle 2. Gigaspermaceae–Bartramiaceae. pp. 407-438. (Botanical Research Institute, Department of Agriculture and Water Supply: Pretoria.)

Matteri, C.M. (1984). Synopsis de las especies Andino-Patagonicas, Antarticas y Subantarticas de los generos Bartramia, Bartramidula y Conostomum. Darwiniana 25: 143–162.

Matteri, C.M. (1984). Bartramiaceae, in Flora Criptogámica de Tierra del Fuego XIV, Fasc. 7. (Fundación para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura, Buenos Aires).

Ramsay, H.P. (1974). Cytological studies of Australian mosses. Australian Journal of Botany 22: 298-348.

Virtanen, V. (2000). Taxonomic studies of the Bartramiaceae [Bryopsida], Publ. Bot. Univ. Helsinki 31. (http: //thesis/helsinki.fi/julkaisut/mat/ekolo /vk/virtanen/taxonomi.pdf).

Virtanen, V. (2003). Phylogeny of the Bartramiaceae (Bryopsida) based on morphology and on rbcL, rps4, and trnL-trnF sequence data. Bryologist 106: 280–296.

Bell, G.H. (2012). Australian Mosses Online. 42. Bartramiaceae: Bartramia. http://www.anbg.gov.au/abrs/Mosses_online/Bartramiaceae_Bartramia.pdf 

First published as:  Bell, G.H. (2006). Bartramia in Bartramiaceae, Flora of Australia Volume 51. (Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra & CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne).