The blepharoplast of Riccia gougetiana displays typical features of the subclass Marchantiidae. The spline reaches a maximum of 24 microtubules and has a closed aperture the equivalent of two microtubule diameters in width. The lamellar strip is longitudinally elongated and asymmetrically spatulate in shape, 1.96 μm long and 0.74 μm wide, the same as the overlying spline. The basal bodies are staggered in insertion, overlapping, and parallel with the spline over most of their lengths. The ABB, situated over the right side of the spline and 0.22 μm from the anterior spline margin, measures 0.71 μm in length including triplet extensions. The PBB is longer, at 1.16 μm, and is situated over the left side of the spline, 0.59 μm from the leading edge of the spline. The uniformity of blepharoplast features in the subclass Marchantiidae, and particularly within the Marchantiales, supports the concept of a monophyletic grouping. The overall similarity of the blepharoplast among those marchantialian genera studied in detail is striking and further supports the use of these features in studying the relationships among bryophytes.