Il Conte G. B. Samaritani (1821–1894) e le Sue Raccolte Botaniche in Egitto ed in Oriente

Abstract

Bryophytes are excellent indicator organisms for monitoring environmental changes to which they could be more sensitive than vascular plants but our knowledge on their adaptation to alpine conditions is still very poor. Research programmes were set up to establish the ecological parameters for bryophyte distribution along the altitudinal gradient as well as for a better understanding of the population biology of alpine bryophytes.     

苔藓植物耐旱机制研究进展

耐旱藓类快速脱水并存活的能力可由快速建立起来的对环境变化的耐受机制来反映,保护细胞完整性的组成型机制与修复细胞损伤的诱导机制协同作用使苔藓植物渡过干旱胁迫.再水化时光合系统原初恢复非常迅速;ABA处理可显著改变PSⅡ的生理特征;基因表达的变化主要由翻译调控引起;脱水组织中贮存mRNPs既保护了mRNAs,又加快了再水化修复速度.山墙藓(Tortula ruralis)是耐旱研究较多的一个种,已建立了表达序列文库(EST),将会成为耐旱研究的重要模式植物.     

Green light drives photosynthesis in mosses

Temperate forests are characterised by variable light quality (i.e. spectral composition of light) at or near the forest floor. These understory environments have a high concentration of green light, as red and blue light are preferentially absorbed by upper canopy leaves. Understory species may be well-adapted for using green light to drive photosynthesis. Angiosperms have been shown to use green light for photosynthesis, but this ability has not been demonstrated in shade-dwelling bryophytes. In this study, net photosynthetic rate (P_N) of three temperate understory species of moss (Dichodontium pellucidum (Hedw.) Schimp., Leucobryum albidum (Brid. ex P.Beauv) Lindb. and Amblystegium serpens (Hedw.) Schimp.) was measured under green, red?+?blue, and red?+?blue?+?green light to assess green light use efficiency. All three species were capable of photosynthesising beyond their respiratory demands using solely green light, with higher green light use efficiency measured in plants collected from areas with greater canopy cover, suggesting growth in a green light concentrated environment increases green light use efficiency. Each species was also collected from sites differing in their degree of canopy cover and grown under three light treatments (high light, low light, and green light). Photosynthetic efficiency (chlorophyll fluorescence), tissue nitrogen and carbon isotope concentrations were assessed after a short growth period. Growth conditions had little effect on leaf chemistry and monochromatic green light did not significantly degrade photosynthetic efficiency. This study provides the first evidence to date of positive net ‘green light photosynthesis’ in mosses.     

Regeneration capacity of oceanic-montane liverworts: implications for community distribution and conservation

Abstract

Scotland’s mountains are home to a rare and unique liverwort community, ‘the oceanic-montane liverwort-rich heath’, but its component species are absent from regions where they could potentially thrive. Many biological characteristics of these species are unknown, making it impossible to explain the reasons for their rarity; however, they have not been observed to produce sporophytes within Britain. We use ex situ cultivation of whole liverworts and fragments, and in situ cultivation of fragments, to assess the growth rate and the potential for vegetative reproduction of several species. Most of the species grew from both fragments and as whole plants, indicating that the rarity of the liverwort heath is not due to poor powers of regeneration. We propose that growth rate and the potential to regenerate from fragments are important factors structuring the liverwort heath community, at least locally. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that there is potential for ex situ conservation of rare liverwort species, in situ enhancement of existing populations, and creation of new ones.     

Structural Characterization and Chemical Classification of Some Bryophytes Found in Latvia

Bryophytes are the second largest taxonomic group in the plant kingdom; yet, studies conducted to better understand their chemical composition are rare. The aim of this study was to characterize the chemical composition of bryophytes common in Northern Europe by using elemental, spectral, and non‐destructive analytical methods, such as Fourier transform IR spectrometry (FT‐IR), solid‐phase ¹³C‐NMR spectrometry, and pyrolysis‐gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py‐GC/MS), for the purpose of investigating their chemotaxonomic relationships on the basis of chemical‐composition data. The results of all these analyses showed that bryophytes consist mainly of carbohydrates. Judging by FT‐IR spectra, the OH groups in combination of C? O groups were the most abundant groups. The ¹³C‐NMR spectra provided information on the presence of such compounds as phenolics and lipids. It was found that the amount of phenolic compounds in bryophytes is relatively small. This finding definitely confirmed the absence of lignin in the studied bryophytes. Cluster analysis was used to better understand differences in the chemical composition of bryophyte samples and to evaluate possible usage of these methods in the chemotaxonomy of bryophytes.     

No borders during the post‐glacial assembly of European bryophytes

Climatic fluctuations during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) exerted a profound influence on biodiversity patterns, but their impact on bryophytes, the second most diverse group of land plants, has been poorly documented. Approximate Bayesian computations based on coalescent simulations showed that the post‐glacial assembly of European bryophytes involves a complex history from multiple sources. The contribution of allochthonous migrants was 95–100% of expanding populations in about half of the 15 investigated species, which is consistent with the globally balanced genetic diversities and extremely low divergence observed among biogeographical regions. Such a substantial contribution of allochthonous migrants in the post‐glacial assembly of Europe is unparalleled in other plants and animals. The limited role of northern micro‐refugia, which was unexpected based on bryophyte life‐history traits, and of southern refugia, is consistent with recent palaeontological evidence that LGM climates in Eurasia were much colder and drier than what palaeoclimatic models predict.     

The ‘salão’ vegetation of Southwestern Amazonia

This paper presents a first account of the salão vegetation of southwestern Amazonia, a frequent but poorly known formation and unusual in that it is a lowland moist tropical environment in which virtually all of the plant diversity is accounted for by herbs. The salões occur along canalized portions of the Purus and Juruá river basins, and their substrates consist of exposed parent materials that characterize much of this sector of Amazonia but are usually overlain by a relatively thin (<1 m) layer of soil. They are constantly moist seeps or ‘seepage banks,’ and the lower portions are seasonally submerged. Strata are recognizable in the vegetation, and the physiognomy and composition of each vegetation band of the salões is likely determined by the slope, the parent material, and (for lower bands) the duration of flooding. To date the salão flora has registered 66 species: 11 bryophytes, 12 ferns, and 43 angiosperms. Five of the bryophyte species, two ferns, and one grass, Arundinella berteroniana, are found in most if not all salões and can be considered indicators of this vegetation type, while most of the pteridophytes and other angiosperms occur more sporadically. None of the species is endemic to the formation and only four to the region; most are associated generally with the margins of rivers, lakes, and streams, often on rocky or sandy substrates. The floristic and conservation significance of this formation lie in its apparent affinities with montane regions, in the fact that 21 species and eight genera are recorded for the Acre flora only from the salões, and in its local value as a source of filtered potable water.     

Bryophyte Red List of Serbia and Montenegro

The bryophyte Red List of Serbia and Montenegro comprises 254 species (212 mosses and 42 liverworts). Serbia and Montenegro have 39.50% of threatened bryoflora. One moss species is considered as extinct (Encalypta serbica Katic). In the threatened categories there are 20 critically endangered (CR), 35 endangered (EN) and 100 vulnerable (VU) bryophyte species. Seventy-two species are considered to be of low risk, and 36 are too data deficient to place them in any category, but potentially with further investigation will enter one of the threat categories in the Red List.     

岩溶型铝土矿尾矿堆不同自然演替阶段苔藓植物多样性特征

按空间代替时间序列的方法,对贵州省修文县小山坝岩溶型铝土矿区尾矿堆5个不同自然演替阶段苔藓植物多样性进行了研究。结果显示：（1）苔藓植物共有11科18属31种,其中藓类9科16属29种,苔类2科2属2种。在演替过程中,苔藓植物生活型单一,仅矮丛集型（占67.7%）和交织型（占32.3%）,矮丛集型占优势地位。苔藓植物物种组成简单,纯群落较多,混合群落随演替阶段逐渐增多。（2）不同自然演替阶段苔藓植物群落Shannon-Wiener指数、Pielou均匀度指数和丰富度指数有所不同,裸岩阶段最低（0.196、0.283和-1.930）,草灌丛阶段最高（3.470、1.281和2.342）,乔灌木阶段逐渐下降（2.128、0.887和1.267）。苔藓植物种的替代速率与相似性变化趋势相反。小山坝岩溶型铝土矿区尾矿堆苔藓植物多样性在5个不同自然演替阶段呈先上升后下降的变化规律,多样性水平总体呈上升趋势,研究结果可为岩溶型铝土矿区生态恢复和生物多样性保护提供基础资料。