Hypnales

Hypnales, synonyms including Isobryales, is an order of Bryophyta or leafy mosses. This group is sometimes called feather mosses, referring to their freely branched stems. The order includes more than 40 families and more than 4,000 species, making them the largest order of mosses.

== Description == thumb|left|Hypnum lindbergii, cross section of the stem with the central vascular bundle thumb|left|River feather-moss, Brachythecium rivulare, prosenchymatic leaf blade cells thumb|right|Detail of a sporangium with a beak-shaped operculum Hypnales are mosses with pinnately or irregularly branched, reclining stems, with varying appearances. The stem contains only a reduced central vascular bundle, which is seen as a recent derived trait in mosses. The stems are covered with paraphyllia or pseudoparaphyllia, reduced filamentous or scaly leaves.