A key to the growthforms of mosses and liverworts and guide to their educational value

Mosses and liverworts have considerable potential as a resource for use in environmental studies. However, these small plants are seldom studied in the field, mainly because they can be difficult to identify. It is suggested that this identification problem may be circumvented by using a system of classification of growth-form types, similar to the kind used for lichens in atmospheric pollution studies. Each growth-form is related to a characteristic range of environmental conditions. This article outlines the value of bryophyte growth-forms as an educational resource and includes a key to growth-forms, developed and tested with teachers, students, and naturalists. The key is easy to use and one does not need to be familiar with bryophyte taxonomy or theories on the adaptive significance of structural characteristics.     

Bryophytes of Kédougou (Eastern Senegal), with a key to the Fissidens of Senegal

The bryophyte flora of the Sahelian region of sub-Saharan Africa is characterized by a low species richness, but is also extremely poorly documented. We present here the results of a floristic survey in Kedougou (eastern Senegal), which yielded 22 species. Two liverworts and 15 moss species are new to the country, so that the bryophyte flora of Senegal now includes a total of 4 liverwort and 34 moss species. An identification key is provided for Fissidens, which, with eight species, is the richest moss genus of the country.     

A checklist of the bryophytes of Andorra

A checklist of 137 liverwort and 445 moss species is established for Andorra based on a review of the literature and a long-term floristic survey. Five moss species, Barbula amplexifolia, Ditrichum zonatum, Grimmia donniana, Pohlia bulbifera, and P. lutescens, are new to the Iberian Peninsula. Another 7 liverwort and 156 moss species are new to Andorra. For each species, the distribution at the scale of 1?km² and altitudinal range are documented, resulting in an improved assessment of the frequency and distribution of 101 moss species previously reported from a single record. Haplomitrium hookeri and Scapania verrucosa, which are the two Regionally Extinct species of the Spanish Red List of liverworts, occur in Andorra, which hosts between 23 and 37% of the species listed as Critically Rare, Endangered, or Vulnerable in the Spanish Red List of bryophytes. Therefore, it appears that Andorra is a key area for the conservation of the high-altitude flora of the Iberian Peninsula.     

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.     

Bryophytes of Sri Lanka: a review of past exploration and taxonomic research and priorities for the future

This overview presents a historical summary of the past collectors of bryophytes (mosses, liverworts and hornworts) in Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon, and some of the researchers who studied and published the results of their explorations. The first British collectors of the early nineteenth century were linked with the development of the Botanic Garden and herbarium in Peradeniya, of which George Gardner and George Thwaites made the greatest contributions, resulting in three publications by William Mitten on both mosses and liverworts. By the mid-nineteenth century, collectors from other countries took the lead, firstly Johannes Nietner from Germany and Odoardo Beccari from Italy. By the early twentieth century, Victor Schiffner from Austria and Max Fleischer from Germany became the leading bryologists throughout SE Asia, and both visited Ceylon. Fleischer’s work was part of a monographic revision of all mosses resulting in many new genera and species. After Fleischer, the most important bryologist was the German Theodor Herzog, who was the first to describe the ecological structure and bryological richness of different forest zones in southern Ceylon, with insight into forest loss from agricultural and population expansion, and a summary of biogeographical links of the bryoflora. The English bryologist H.N. Dixon took over from Mitten in describing many new moss species. Since independence in 1948, bryology in Sri Lanka has had major input from some local bryologists, such as B.A. Abeywickrama, as well as several important visitors, notably H. Inoue from Japan, C.C. Townsend from England, P.P.M. Tixier from France, and Maurice Onraedt from Belgium. Awareness in Sri Lanka of the need to taxonomically revise the extensive and scattered herbarium collections, has led to the running of some bryophyte workshops and training of new Sri Lankan bryologists. The ultimate goal of these efforts is to produce the first comprehensive bryophyte flora of the country, and priorities for future work are outlined.     

On the influence of water conductivity,pH and climate on bryophyte assemblages in Catalan semi-natural springs

Bryophytes are some of the most sensitive biological indicators of environmental change. Springs have a significant presence of bryophytes and so are ideal habitats for studying their relationship with the environment. We tested whether bryophyte assemblages can be explained with macro-, meso- and micro-ecological variables (i.e. seasonal climate, altitude, water pH and conductivity) sampling bryophytes from 198 semi-natural springs distributed along montane regions in the north-eastern Iberian Peninsula. We tested the influence of environmental variables on bryophyte assemblages in springs using sparse Partial Least Squares. Our results show that variability in bryophyte assemblages is explained by seasonal climate (temperature and precipitation from winter, spring, summer and autumn and temperature and precipitation seasonality), altitude and water conductivity. The results obtained by the present study will be useful for predicting bryophyte diversity in springs using simple and easy to obtain variables such as climate, water pH and conductivity.     

Biological diversity and cultural heritage

In this paper some examples of the development of communities of microorganisms and plants on historic buildings and montiments are shown. When the building stones differ from the surrounding natural substrata, an increase in the biological diversity of the area is produced. In some cases, monuments can come to constitute a true refuge for a few species when the natural habitat is threatened. It is suggested that biological diversity, when it does not represent a threat for the cultural heritage, should be considered worthy of preservation.     

Biological diversity and cultural heritage

In this paper some examples of the development of communities of microorganisms and plants on historic buildings and monuments are shown. When the building stones differ from the surrounding natural substrata, an increase in the biological diversity of the area is produced. In some cases, monuments can come to constitute a true refuge for a few species when the natural habitat is threatened. It is suggested that biological diversity, when it does not represent a threat for the cultural heritage, should be considered worthy of preservation.     

Rarity and site selection for bryophyte conservation

Sites that are particularly rich in rare species are of significant conservation value and there is consequently a need to ensure that they are highlighted by methods which aim to select sites for potential safeguarding. This study measures the value for rare bryophytes of 434 sites, located in South Lancashire, north-west England (UK). Using cluster analysis, these are split into three groups, representing high, moderate and low rarity value sites. Sub-sets of sites of equal total area were then created for hypothetical safeguarding using two of the many site selection methods in operation, one being a traditional criteria-based approach and the other a maximum-coverage algorithmic procedure. Both methods failed to choose all sites of high value for rare bryophytes, while the latter included substantially more smaller sites of moderate and low value. It seems that a threshold type criterion assessed against a composite and continuous measure of rarity has the potential to improve the selection of sites of substantive wildlife value. This is discussed in the context of the networks of Local Wildlife Sites and Sites of Special Scientific Interest in the UK.     

The inventory of bryophytes at sites: completeness and survey effort

Abstract

Knowledge of the species present within a site is often used to inform decisions that have significant implications for biodiversity conservation. This study surveyed eight woodland sites in north-west England for bryophytes. Searches for species within each site continued until all areas had been approached to within a minimum of 50 m and at least 60 minutes had elapsed since the discovery of a new species. Survey data were used to build predictive models that provided an estimate of the total number of species present at each site and the time required to compile a complete inventory. The ‘50 m 60 minutes stopping rule’ consistently produced comprehensive inventories for sites, judging by the numbers of species found and model predictions of the total number of species present. The study suggests that a minor alteration to conventional survey practice and a small amount of data analysis can provide useful assessments of the completeness of bryophyte inventories for sites.     

Herbaria and Botanic Gardens as the memory of biological diversity

Abstract

In order to fully understand biological diversity of plants, it is necessary to study their genetic and metabolic-functional aspects. However, it is also necessary to identify with utmost precision the kind of organism under study, to allow the reproducibility of experimental results. Within this context, a major role is played by Botanic Gardens and Herbaria, where the investigated specimens are cultivated and kept as exsiccata, respectively, as a memory of plant diversity. After pointing out the role of herbaria in reference to the typologic concept of species, the author mentions the recent advances made possible by PCR techniques and RAPD markers in the analysis of the species and of the evolutionary relationships amongst allied taxa. Systematics, as study of diversity, is a modern and fascinating science.     

Estimates of the number of mounted pteridophyte specimens in six major herbaria in the United States

A stratified-random sampling method was used to estimate the number of pteridophyte specimens in six of the largest herbaria in the United states (F, GH/A/NEBC, MO, NY, UC, US). The point estimate of the collection size and the 95% confidence intervals for each herbarium were found to be as follows: US 251,000 (±20,000); NY 201,000 (±20,000); MO 160,000 (±15,000); GH/A/NEBC 124,000 (±12,000); UC 119,000 (±9,000); F 97,000 (±10,000). It is hoped that these numbers will help assess the growth of these collections in the future.