Ecology: Premontane to montane forest and margins, apparently extending into the shrubby páramo and humid puna; mostly shaded habitats, on soil, humus and rocks. Elevation: 780-4100 m (Venezuela: 780 m, Colombia: 940-3000 m, Ecuador: 1540-3385 m, Peru: 900-4100 m, Bolivia 1400-3150 m). Distribution: Widespread in the montane areas of the Neotropics.

      Bryum densifolium is one of the larger species with stems often 3-6 cm high, the leaves are distant or crowded, oblong to oblong-lanceolate (to 6 mm long), apices acute, costa strong, short excurrent, margins sharply toothed above, teeth single but sometime double, border of 1-3(4) long linear cells, upper cells rhomboidal-hexagonal, usually porose, basal cells rectangular. This species is frequent in shaded habitats, possibly more common in seasonally drier montane forests. Bryum coloratum Müll. Hal. determined by H. Ochi from Cundinamarca at 3620 m and reported for Colombia by Churchill (1989) is this taxon; B. coloratum Müll. Hal. was listed as a synonym of B. canariense Brid. by Ochi (1980) but then as a synonym of B. densifolium by Ochi in Sharp et al. (1994).

      Specimens: VENEZUELA. Amazonas: Liesner 16772B (MO). COLOMBIA. Chocó: Churchill et al. 14535 (HUA, MO, NY); Nariño: Ramírez P. 5562 (MO, PSO). ECUADOR. Azuay: King 6684G (MO); Imbabura: Peñafiel et al. 612 (MO). PERU. Amazonas: P. & E. Hegewald 7044 (MO); La Libertad: P. & E. Hegewald 7171 (MO). BOLIVIA. Santa Cruz: Churchill et al. 20427 (MO, USZ); Tarija: Churchill 20768 (MO, USZ). ARGENTINA. Tucumán: Churchill & Schiavone 20110 (LIL, MO).