The Bryological Times n° 106bryology.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Bryological-Times-2002-107.pdfThe Bryological Times, Issue 106 – July 2002 Page 3 August 15th As we moved towards

_____________________________________________________The International Association of Bryologists (IAB) is an organization open for all interested in bryophytes. For membership, contactSandi Vitt, Department of Plant Biology, Southern Illinois Univ., Carbondale, IL 62901-6509, USA ([email protected]). Visit also ourweb site at http://www.devonian.ualberta.ca/iab/. The Bryological Times is issued 4 times per year.

N e w s l e t t e r o f t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n o f B r y o l o g i s t s

C O N T E N TMeeting reports

• The International Sphagnum Symposium and Excursion, Sweden - Norway ................................................... pg 2• The post IAB-Conference Field Trip to Nainital, India ........................................................................................ pg 6• The 2002 Annual Meeting of the American Bryological and Lichenological Society ....................................... pg 7

Course Reports• Tropical-Africa Bryology coursed at the University of Nairobi, Kenya .............................................................. pg 8• Announcement of the International Course “Biology of Mosses, Liverworts and Lichens,

January 4-11, 2003, Navarino Island, Antarctic Province, Chile ....................................................................... pg 10Literature Column (Ed. J. Enroth)

• Review: H. Kruyer. Hypopterygiaceae of the World ........................................................................................... pg 11• Sale: Edwin B. Bartram “Mosses of Guatemala” ............................................................................................... pg 11• New publication of Notothylas of the Indian subcontinent ................................................................................ pg 12• Register of Taxonomic projects ............................................................................................................................ pg 12

In focus• Bryological Research News from China .................................. ........................................................................... pg 13

Theses in Bryology ............................................................................................................................................................ pg 14Conservation Column (Ed. T. Hallingbäck)

• “Bryophyte Conservation: Current Status & Future Work” Workshop ......................................................... pg 15New and interesting records

• The extraordinary hepatic Myriocolea rediscovered ........................................................................................... pg 16• The only actual records of Notothylas orbicularis in Europe .............................................................................. pg 16

Vacancy .............................................................................................................................................................................. pg 18IAB-Announcements

• The IAB World Conference in Bryology, Mérida 2003 : a new website www.merida-2003.com................................................................................................................................................................................ pg 19

• Call for Applications for the Stanley Greene Award .......................................................................................... pg 19• Personalia ................................................................................................................................................................ pg 19• IAB Call for Nominations ..................................................................................................................................... pg 19• Diary – meetings ..................................................................................................................................................... pg 20

Editorial In 2003, the IAB-World Conference in Bryology will be our most important event. May Itherefore draw your attention to the conference website, which has been specifically set up forthis event? I have also started with a “Personalia” section: this section is offered to allow IAB-members toannounce career changes, graduate degrees obtained, grants or awards collections received,important expeditions which you plan to organise and so on. And finally, as there is no regional editor for Europe, I wonder which active, young bryologistwould like to take up this job?

Geert Raeymaekers E-mail: [email protected]

IAB

ISSN 0253-4738

The Bryological TimesNumber 107 October 2002

__________________________________________________________________

Page 2 The Bryological Times, Issue 107 – October 2002

MEETING REPORT

Third International Symposium on the Biology of Sphagnum, Uppsala – Trondheim 2002

Report by Line Rochefort and Harri Vasander

The first international symposium on the biology of Sphagnumwas held in 1991 in Exeter, England and the second one inUSA (New Jersey)- Canada (Québec) in 1996. In Québec, thehonour of organising the third symposium was given to theprominent Uppsala-Trondheim research groups inScandinavia. The main organisers in Sweden were HåkanRydin, Sebastian Sundberg and Urban Gunnarsson and inNorway Kjell Ivar Flatberg, Karen Thingsgaard and SigurdSåstad. Besides them, there were many others who made thissymposium a very well organised and special event. We wantto thank the organisers on behalf of all the participants: 42 onthe excursion and 53 ‘indoors’. Here follows a short diary ofthe excursion and some notes on the ‘indoor part’ of thesymposium.

August 12th

After all the hassle that most people had to go through withthe travelling, it was refreshing to land at a peaceful oldwooden manor house in Sweden. Thanks to the Swedishorganising team for choosing such a relaxing place just on theoutskirts of Uppsala. We had the pleasure to be welcomed inSweden by Hugo Sjörs, who chattily told us, accompanied bya glass of blueberry wine, stories about his expeditions allaround the world.

August 13th

On the first day, two well-studied mires were visited:Ryggmossen, a concentric bog with no open pools and typicalfor SE Sweden with low precipitation, and Kulflyten, asomewhat excentrically domed bog with pools and bare peathollows. Bare peat hollow is the latest suggestion from DickyClymo in terminology to replace mud-bottom as mud hasusually a connotation with mineral soil. The unexpected onthat day was the weather. We were all instructed to bringwarm garments including gloves, scarf and toque as well as tobe well provided with rain gear but instead we experienced ahot humid day where we all wondered if our suitcases werenot all too heavy for no use! Fortunately for us, and the mires,we had a nice shower just when discussing the carbon fluxesof pools and peat hollows. On both mires we were trying hardto distinguish the species as well as male and female plants ofthe Cuspidata section: S. angustifolium, S. fallax, S.cuspidatum, S. majus ssp. norvegicum, S. balticum and S.viride.

Håkan Rydin started our series of evening lessons by tellingabout the climate and vegetation zonation in Sweden.

August 14th

The savour of the day was the observation of swallow-holes(sink holes) at Skattlösbergs Stormosse. Hugo Sjörs made anin-depth study of this peatland in 1944-45 and UrbanGunnarson resurveyed it in 1994-95. For several of us, it wasinteresting to see S. wulfianum forming hummocks. While wecontinued to identify the different Cuspidata species as on theday before, we also found some other interesting but difficultpairs such as S. palustre and S. centrale and S. inundatum andS. subsecundum.

With a nice bright sun and much drier weather than yesterday,it was pleasant to have tea, coffee, and home-made bread andcheese at a ‘fäbod’, a transhumance farm of which only fewremain active in Sweden today. In the evening, we had a niceintroductory talk on the diversity and floristic inventory of thepeatlands in Sweden given by Michael Löfroth. It was veryimpressive to see the potential of floristic analyses that couldbe done with the 30 000 vegetation relevés done so far.

Kjell Flatberg demonstrating Sphagnum field characteristicsduring the IAB-field excursion.

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________The Bryological Times, Issue 106 – July 2002 Page 3

August 15th

As we moved towards the border of Norway, the altitudeslowly rose to ca 500 m a.s.l. and we reached the middleboreal zone of Sweden. In this region, the organisers took usto a very nice nature reserve, Flickran mire, a 300 ha mirecomplex, which has the particularity to include steep mireslopes and numerous flarks. Certainly, for several of us, thiswas the first encounter with sloping mires. Here we gotacquainted with S. angermanicum, which is suspected to beincreasing in abundance in Sweden. On the shallower parts ofthe fen, large cushions of S. compactum could be observed.We also became acquainted with the brown forms of S.girgensohnii. By climbing up an old twisted pine, HarriVasander demonstrated how to take good pictures of a fenwith flarks. His technique was soon followed by the fittest!

That afternoon, we visited an extreme rich fen, Movallsflon, inthe Jämtland province. For a change, we focused on brownmosses, although there was good discussion about useful fieldcharacters for separating S. russowii from S. warnstorfii. Hereis one that you will not find in an identification book: S.warnstorfii has its pendant branches closely appressed to thestem whereas the ones of S. russowii will first reach out andthen further downward along the stem also be appressed. As acompensation for all this mire trampling, everybodyappreciated the clean accommodation, quiet places and verynice evening meals in Sweden. That evening we could enjoytasty deer and moose stroganoff, accompanied by Rubuschamaemorus and Vaccinium vitis-idea berries. It was justdelicious!

August 16th

During the morning, we visited Klockamyren, a very nice mirecomplex besides the lake Ånn. It had an ombrotrophic and aminerotrophic part even with some rich-fen vegetation. Peatwas being eroded near the shore of the lake and we spent a lotof time making paleoecological studies and speculating aboutthe causes of this erosion. However, most of the time wasspent in identifying the different red species of the Acutifoliasection: S. rubellum, S. capillifolium, S.russowii – even someother more exotic species names were quietly mentioned!

The scenery had become mountainous by this point, and wecould see even some snow on the mountain slopes. Theseareas were also covered by huge sloping fens.

During the afternoon we visited Visjövalen, a nice sloping fen.The main troublesome peat mosses there were of theSubsecunda section: S. subsecundum, S. contortum, and S.platyphyllum. Some other interesting species includedLoeskypnum badium, Scorpidium cossonii, Sphagnumsubnitens ssp. subnitens as well as the very rare and yellow-flowered Pedicularis oederi.

After a short break at the border village, we crossed theSwedish-Norwegian border; unnoticed by most of the

participants as the bus did not even slow down! Soon wecame to the seashore and had accommodation in Levanger, asmall town on the edge of a fjord. That evening, AsbjørnMoen gave a comprehensive presentation of the vegetationzones, sections and ecological regions of Norway. He alsoclarified the mire terminology and mire-conservation issues inNorway.

August 17th

Today the whole day was spent at the same mire, but what amire! Upper Forra is a 108-km2 large nature reserve with anoceanic climate and is situated 400 m a.s.l. This means thatwe were close to the tree limit and had unobstructed views ofcascading sloping mires ending in a sea of fens. With a bluesky and a temperature of 24 °C, the view was breathtaking.Here, we worked on the Sphagnum recurvum complex as allmembers of this group were seen: S. angustifolium, S.flexuosum, S. fallax, S. brevifolium and S. isoviitae. Forseveral of us, all the different characters got mixed up as theywere dancing in our heads by the end of the afternoon, and thismight not only be due to the close relationships between thesespecies. However, the barbecued lamb chop and the amount ofred wine served during the lunch might have played tricks onthe mind while trying to sort out the species. In all we hadanother wonderful day but were very sorry to have missed thecompany of Asbjørn Moen. He had to leave us as his motherpassed away the previous evening. One has to know thatAsbjørn’s direct involvement protected Upper Forra, whichwas threatened by flooding as a result of dam construction fora hydro-electrical power plant. We all are really proud andgrateful for your efforts to protect this magnificent area,Asbjørn, and mourn together with you.

August 18th

Again the morning was warm and sunny, and our Norwegianhosts were afraid that the mires would be too dry to see therarest species of our trip: S. troendelagicum. This was goingto be the day for that species!

During our way to Stortrønningen we saw nice examples ofboreal rain forests with many epiphytic lichens hanging fromspruce twigs. At the mire site we did succeed in finding quitegood examples of S. troendelagicum. Only 15 localities in aradius of 50 km are known from the whole world! Thespecies is allopolyploid with S. tenellum and S. balticum asprogenitors. As the parental species exist together in manyparts of the world, it seems that this species has yet to befound elsewhere or - the other explanation - that there issomething special in Stortrønningen!

The afternoon was not just warm. It was hot! Apparentlycentral Norway was experiencing its driest summer on recordand today central Norway was the warmest place in Europe.This had never happened before! As we had lunch by a lake,many of us did not need to be convinced to take a dive andone did not mind the belt of aquatic plants to reach the

__________________________________________________________________


thoroughly refreshing water. During the afternoon, we visiteda blanket bog, Momyran at Fosen peninsula. It was dry and wedid not pay much attention to the Sphagnum flora but more tothe different definitions of blanket mires.

August 19th

The day started with a refreshing ferry crossing to the island ofHitra. We followed Kjell Ivar and Karen in the forest patchand a steep sloping ravine fen. They could demonstrate all sixspecies of the section Sphagnum: S. affine, S. austinii, S.centrale, S. magellanicum, S. palustre and S. papillosum. It isstrange that the two species S. affine and S. austinii were keptfor so long together as S. imbricatum although in the field theyreally differ both in their morphology and ecology. We hadthe chance to see S. affine and S. centrale adjacent to eachother. This Havmyrane site was also good for discussinganother past misunderstanding: the distinction between S.auriculatum and S. inundatum, formerly combined as S.denticulatum.

That afternoon, in the subtropical Norwegian weather, theparticipants searched - as mountain goats - the rocky ridges forfresh wind rather than following the guides to the dried fens

August 20th

The visit to Malmmyran mire had two goals: to see one of thelargest remaining Atlantic raised ombrotrophic mirecomplexes and to become acquainted with S. viride, a closerelative of S. cuspidatum.

Because it was again another warm and sunny day, lunch wastaken by the rocky seashore to permit a dip in the water. Itmust be said that one couldn’t resist swimming in this veryclear water, not overgrown by algae, even when the watertemperature was only 15-16 °C. That afternoon, we visited asmall ombrotrophic mire, Straumøya. There half of the groupwent back swimming in the inviting sea while othersinvestigated the wet forms of several Sphagnum speciesgrowing in old peat pits or along the dry peat baulks. In theseextreme dry conditions, it was really difficult to distinguishthe different red species of the Acutifolia section in the field.

During the evening we had an interesting and refreshing boattrip to the islands of Sula and Mausund. The sea was calm, asif it had an oiled surface, which, according to our captain,happened the last time in 1973. Besides seeing efficientsalmon farming we also visited ‘The Happy Sailor’. This pubwas a good start for discussing through the night and foradmiring the northern lights and full moon from the Frøyaisland beach.

August 21st

The small Atlantic ombrotrophic mire E of Sunde wascharacterised by S. austinii hummocks with Racomitriumlanuginosum as an Atlantic species. Another interestingspecies seen on the steep minerotrophic slope was S. subnitens

ssp. ferrugineum, which is easy to distinguish in the fieldwhen you see it.

The last site of the excursion was at Langvatnet, which has ahighly humid oceanic climate reflected by the occurrence of S.quinquefarium, S. rubiginosum, Rhytidiadelphus loreus andBlechnum spicant. In the spruce forest we saw large mats of S.rubiginosum growing together with S. girgensohnii, S.quinquefarium and also S. russowii.

When the field trip ended in Trondheim, we realised that wehad experienced something very special: a unique excursion tomires showing many and new species; excellent guides whocould answer all our question, without getting tired; veryspecial weather conditions, and finally colleagues sharingdeep interest – almost a passion - in Sphagnum.

It is beyond our vocabulary and skill to express our deepgratitude to the organisers. We had an excellent fieldexcursion guide (Thingsgaard & Flatberg 2002) as well asKjell Ivars field colour guide (Flatberg 2002). Both willoccupy a central place in our bookshelves.

August 22nd and 23rd

The ‘indoors’ part of the symposium consisted of 37presentations (19 oral and 18 poster presentations).Enlightened key speeches were given by Jonathan Shaw(Duke, USA) on the ‘Application of molecular evidence to thesystematics of Sphagnum’ and by Dicky Clymo (London, UK)on the ‘Ecology of Sphagnum’. As there is a well-editedabstract publication (Såstad & Rydin 2002) we do not furtherpresent these presentations in detail. One thing worthmentioning outside the abstracts is the great seafood we had inNorway. The top in this category was the excellentsymposium dinner in the restaurant ‘Mermaid’, a restored oldwooden house beside the river.

In his concluding remarks Håkan Rydin compared the timebetween the Sphagnum symposia as an Olympiad. Researchand publishing (training) is made between the symposia,‘Olympic Games’ to show research results to colleaguesworldwide. He pointed out the fast development of taxonomysince the second Sphagnum symposium. Processes behindspeciation are now better understood. For ecologists it maysometimes be difficult to follow the newest taxonomicaldevelopments, which highlight the importance of voucherspecimens in ecological research. For this purpose,researching joint taxonomical–ecological problems would befruitful. As one example he mentioned the ongoing researchon the speciation of S. troendelagicum in a very smallgeographical area. Why and when and how just there?

These special symposia devoted to only one genus –Sphagnum – gives us an excellent opportunity to meet and tocommunicate. We had a great time together and got veryinspired although sometimes even confused by the latestdevelopments. Dick Andrus (NY; USA), Jonathan Shaw (NC;USA) and Karen Golinski (BC, Canada) were given freehands to look for the suitable time and place for the fourthinternational symposium on the biology of Sphagnum. Timing

__________________________________________________________________


might be after 4-5 years and Alaska was mentioned as oneprobable part of the Sphagnum world.

References

Flatberg, K.I. 2002. The Norwegian Sphagna : a field colourguide. – NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet Rapp. Bot. Ser. 2002-1: 1-44 + 54 Plates.

Såstad, S.M. & Rydin, H. (eds.) 2002. Third internationalsymposium on the biology of Sphagnum. Uppsala –

Trondheim August 2002: schedule and abstracts. - NTNUVitenskapsmuseet Rapp. Bot. Ser. 2002-3: 1-30.

Thingsgaard, K. & Flatberg, K.I. (eds.) 2002. Thirdinternational symposium on the biology of Sphagnum.Uppsala – Trondheim August 2002: excursion guide. - NTNUVitenskapsmuseet Rapp. Bot. Ser. 2002-2: 1-89.

Line Rochefort (Email: [email protected])Harri Vasander (Email: [email protected])

The participants of the IAB-Sphagnum Symposium field excursion

__________________________________________________________________


MEETING REPORT

The post IAB Conference field trip to the Nainital mountain range (India)

B.C. Tan and D. G. Long Benito Tan and David Long sent the following report of thisexcursion to the Nainital mountain range. It was not insertedin the conference report, which was published in the last issueof the Bryological Times.

On the last day of the IAB World Conference on Bryology(Lucknow, India), a special final dinner was prepared at theNBRI Guest House to send off the participants who signed upfor the post-conference field trip to Nainital in the NWHimalaya.

The group, departed by the overnight train from Lucknow at9pm on a dark rainy night after a lively exchange of huggingand goodbye greetings.. In total, 15 participants from &countries (6 UK, 2 Norway, 2 Finland, 2 Japan, 1 Sweden, 1Hungary and 1 China) were expertly guided by Drs Nath,Asthana, and Tewari and with Ms M.C. Nair from Kerala.After some reshuffling of bryologists and baggage betweencompartments, and some lively discussions (and nightcaps) weenjoyed a comfortable journey and awoke at 7.15 am in thefirst light of day at Lalkuan which nestles on the Gangeticplain below Nainital. A bus was waiting and soon we werespeeding towards the hills through villages, past plantations ofTeak (Tectona grandis) and scattered roadside trees ofDalbergia sissoo, Mango (Mangifera indica), Sal (Shorearobusta) and Simal (Bombax ceiba) with its showy redflowers. We crossed into the State of Uttaranchal (untilrecently the hilly part of Uttar Pradesh) then zigzagged uphilltowards the lake land of Nainital. The vegetation changedfrom tropical trees and bananas to Chir Pine (Pinusroxburghii), Evergreen Oak (Quercus leucotrichophora) andCypress (Cupressus torulosa) and above us we could see themajestic Deodars (Cedrus deodara) on the ridges emergingfrom a carpet of snow.

Reaching Nainital at 9.15am on 28 January, we were greetedby a blanket of snow on the main street (The Mall). Thisfollows the shore of Nainital Lake (about 1950m altitude),which is surrounded by steep forested hills, though the townitself is steadily sprawling upwards. The Nainital area whenviewed from above is a series of ridges (up to about 2500m)and valleys, several of which contain lakes. The ridge topsalso give splendid panoramas of the snowy Great HimalayanRange far to the north. Away from the town, areas of forestare well preserved, with oak on the lower slopes and Deodarabove. We drove through the town to the spacious ArifCastles Hotel where we stayed for two nights. The hotel was‘under renovation’ and although the bedrooms were heatedand warm, ‘dressing up for dinner’ took on a new meaningdue to the surprisingly cold weather inside and out.

Bryology began almost immediately on the first afternoonwith local roadside stops at Bharapahar, Khurpatal and on theroad to Bhowali. The main habitats for bryophytes were theroad cuttings and walls, home to several Marchantialesincluding Asterella mussuriensis, A. wallichiana, twoPlagiochasma species, Targionia hypophylla and aCyathodium. Fragments of mossy Quercus / Cupressus foresthad epiphytic species including Leucodon secundus,Cryptoleptodon pluvinii, Herpetineuron toccoae, Ptychanthusstriatus, Meteoriopsis reclinata and Erythrodontium julaceum.All of these turned out to be common in the area. Dr Tewarialso showed us a fine colony of Athalamia pinguis on soil-covered limestone rocks and a small colony of Stephensoniellabrevipedunculata. These and other Marchantiales weregenerally not at their best in January, the best season beingAugust to October.

Next morning (29 January), we were awakened by monkeyscrashing over the corrugated iron roof above our bedrooms.The snow gradually melted to give a fine sunny day. We werewhisked up the municipal cable car to the Snow View ridgebut urban encroachment had degraded the forest somewhat.The views fully compensated, with tantalising glimpses ofdistant peaks. A number of interesting finds were made, suchas Asterella khasyana and Reboulia hemisphaerica on soil andSyntrichia gemmascens on Quercus bark. Ornithologybecame clearly established as serious competition to bryologyand the area did seem to be rich in birds, perhaps migrantsescaping from the cold snowy conditions higher up. Thedescent was on foot, down a beautifully paved red-brick path,with Cryptomitrium himalayense conveniently growing at eye-level.

On the third day (30 January) we spent the morning exploringthe mossy oak forest on the opposite hillside above NainitalLake, again following the roadside and exploring the shadyroadside banks and walls. A good range of different generawere collected, such as Anomodon, Entodon, Fabronia,Palamocladium, Plagiochila, Porella, Radula, Rhodobryumand Timmiella. We did not get far into the mossy forest,however. After lunch at the hotel, and some words of thanksfrom Royce Longton on behalf of the overseas bryologists,most of the group packed up for the afternoon bus journeyback to Kathgodam, where some boarded the train back toLucknow, and others took the overnight sleeper to Delhi. Fivebryologists stayed on for some additional field work (threeBritish for three days and two Norwegians for two days). Wemoved downtown to more modest accommodation andenjoyed several excursions by taxi and on foot to moreinaccessible localities, Sat Tal at 1300m in the Chir Pine zone,the mossy oak forests around Land’s End and finally the north

__________________________________________________________________


side of the Snow View ridge at Dhobi Ghat where aspectacular ravine descends with waterfalls and deep pools.Many bryophytes of interest were seen, with Marchantialessuch as Dumortiera hirsuta and Wiesnerella denudata, andmany epiphytes including Meteorium buchanani andHomaliodendron.

Benito C. Tan (Benito Tan, Department of BiologicalSciences, National University of Signapore, Singapore119260) and David Long, (Royal Botanic Garden, InverleithRow, Edinburg EH3 5LR, U.K., [email protected])

MEETING REPORT

The 2002 Annual Meeting of the American Bryological and Lichenological Society

Occasionally the American Bryological and LichenologicalSociety meets independently of the Botanical or MycologicalSociety of America. This year, the Society met by itself at theUniversity of Connecticut in Storrs, where nearly 70researchers from North America and Europe attended itsannual meeting from July 24th to the 28th, 2002. Our localrepresentative was Bernard Goffinet, who organized themeeting, as well as solicited funds from his university to helpsubsidize the program. The meeting included two days of talksand three days of field trips. The conference began with twoone-day field trips within Connecticut. On the first day,granitic outcrops in a typical mixed hardwood deciduousforest and a Chamaecyparis swamp were visited. The secondday, calcareous outcrops in western Connecticut wereexplored. Here, the lichenologists uncovered the thirdreported and by far most northerly locality of Agonimiaopuntiella (Buschardt & Poelt) Vězda in North America, andthe bryologists recorded Neckera besseri (Łobarż.)Jur., as newfor Connecticut. This field excursion was followed by aworkshop led by Dr. Irwin Brodo on the significance of ascuscharacters to lichen systematics. During that time, bryologistswere taken to a seepy ridge dominated by mosses andliverworts.

On the first day of the conference proper, all participants werehosted to a welcoming breakfast by the Office of the Dean ofthe Graduate Schools of the University of Connecticut.Following the breakfast, when all participants were nowpresent, the scientific program began with a presentation byDr. Didier Schaefer from the University of Lausanne(Switzerland) who was invited to give a seminar on mossgenomics, drawing attention to the advantages that the modeltaxon Physcomitrella patens offers in comparison toArabidopsis. Funding for this seminar was provided through agrant from the Research Foundation of the University ofConnecticut, matched by funds from the Society. Also on thefirst day of talks, 12 students competed for the A. J. SharpAward for the best student oral presentation. The award wentto Rebecca Yahr from Duke University for her study "Thestructure of symbiotic communities: Population-level patternsof association between lichen fungi and their algalphotobionts." The award is accompanied by a check for $500and a one-year membership to the Society and subscription to

its journal, THE BRYOLOGIST. This year, the prize wassupplemented by books donated by various publishers, namelyCambridge University Press (Bryophyte Biology, edited by J.Shaw & B. Goffinet), University of Michigan Herbarium(Structural Diversity of Bryophytes, by H. Crum), YaleUniversity Press (Lichens of North America, by I. M. Brodo,S. D. Sharnoff, and S. Sharnoff), as well as Thomas Nash III,editor and publisher of the Lichens of the Sonoran Desert.These books were distributed between the student winner andrunners-up. The Society is grateful to the publishers for theirsupport in rewarding excellence in research by our students.The Society also invited Dr. Louise Lewis, from theUniversity of Connecticut, to present, on the second day oftalks, results from her studies on the phylogenetic diversity ofalgal crusts in desert environments, a subject of particularinterest to the lichenologists. In total 27 research papers werepresented during the two days of talks, with topics rangingfrom bryophyte phylogeny to the biology of endolithic lichensin the Sonoran Desert.

A banquet sponsored by the Office of the Dean of the Collegeof Liberal Arts and Sciences was held on Saturday evening.On this occasion The New Botanical Garden presented, in thepresence of the Senior Science Editor of Yale UniversityPress, Jean Black, the 2002 Gleason Award for a publicationmaking a significant contribution to plant systematics orecology, to Dr. Irwin Brodo (Canadian Museum of Nature)and his collaborators for their book "The Lichens of NorthAmerica."

On the final day of the meeting ABLS members once againheaded to the field. Of particular interest was an old gravel pitand "talus" slope against a reservoir dam.

It was a very successful meeting, in large part due to theefforts of our local representative. The ABLS meeting in 2003will be held in conjunction with the Botanical Society ofAmerica at the Mobile Convention Center in Mobile, Alabamaon July 26-31, immediately after the IAB meeting in Mérida,Venezuela.

Bernard GoffinetWilliam R. Buck

_____________________________________________________Page 8 The Bryological Times, Issue 107 – October 2002

COURSE REPORT

Tropical-Africa Bryology courses at the University of Nairobi (Kenya)

In 1999, Dr. Min S. Chuah-Petiot of the Univeristy of Nairobiinitiated a series of “Tropical-Africa Bryology Courses”.

Since then, four of these courses have taken place. Dr. Chuah-Petiot provides the following report.

The “Tropical-Africa Bryology Courses” are an importantinitiative to stimulate bryology in Africa. The objectives ofthese courses are to provide starting African botanists with anintroductory course in tropical bryology, to increase theawareness of the importance of bryological research for and inAfrica and to create a network of African professionalbryologists and botanists with an interest in bryology.

For these courses, professional and experienced bryologistsare invited to lecture and to assist in the field excursions andlaboratory sessions. During the lectures, various bryologyitems are taught: the morphology, biology, and classificationof mosses, liverworts and hornworts, the ecology of tropicalbryophytes, techniques of bryophyte collection in tropicalenvironments,theidentificationof collectedspecimens; themanagement ofa cryptogamicherbarium andthe survey andcurrent status of bryological exploration in Africa.Additionally, these courses initiate young bryologists tobiomonitoring techniques and show them the importance ofbryophytes in tropical biotopes (bryodiversity, ecology, andbryophyte conservation).

Wherever possible, these introductory courses alternate, or areintegrated with, laboratory sessions or field excursions so thatthe participants are able to work with freshly collectedmaterial.

Participants who attended the courses came from institutionsof higher learning, universities, and several of them arecurators of herbaria or working in botanic gardens or in field-related projects. Participants were selected on the basis of theirbackground in science, their current position in theirworkplace if any and the benefits these participants will bringto their individual institutions in addition to selecting fromdiverse countries from Africa. Selected non-Kenyan Africanparticipants were fully sponsored: air tickets, transport andaccommodation, course fees and field trips were covered.Kenyan participants were often sponsored by their homeinstitutions. We do not fund participants from outside Africa;

therefore, they have to look for alternative funding. Thetraining courses are open to all.

Between 1999 and 2002, four courses took place and I wouldlike to use this as an opportunity to express my sincere thanksto all the funding bodies that provided financial assistance forthese courses.

The first course was held from 13th to 22nd September 1999and was funded by the International Development ResearchCentre. This first course was attended by 9 participants fromTanzania, Ethiopia, Zambia and Kenya. During a field trip tothe Ngong Hills (2400m), the participants experienced thevarious bryophyte habitats and were able to collect specimens.

The second course washeld between the 19th ofJune and the 1st of July2000 and was supportedby UNESCO. Nineparticipants came fromTanzania, Uganda andvarious institutions ofhigher learning in

Kenya. In addition to the bryological courses presented by Dr.Min S. Chuah-Petiot, attention was paid to lichenology and forthis session, Dr. Vagn Alstrup from the University ofCopenhagen was invited as a guest tutor. Here, again, a day-long field trip was spent in the Ngong Hills.

The third course was held between 9th and 21st July 2001 andwas also generously supported by UNESCO. We received 13participants from Benin, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia,Zimbabwe, Malawi, Madagascar and Kenya. As in the 3rd

course, Dr. Vagn Alstrup kindly prepared the lichenologicalcourses and a similar excursion and collecting trip wasorganised to the Ngong Hills.

The fourth course was planned as an advanced course andfocused on bryology only. This course was held between the11th and the 22nd of March 2002. Prof. Tamás Pócs (EsterhazyCollege, Hungary) was the guest tutor. Participants came fromSpain and Kenya. A two-day field trip to the Aberdaremountains (summit 4001m) was organised to collectbryophytes. This was a very successful excursion as twospecies new to science were discovered and several newrecords will be published for these mountains. The two newspecies are Cololejeunea chuahiana and Microlejeunea

Actually, in our teaching, we handle the higher plants more effectivelythan the lower plants. This course was therefore an opportunity tobecome more familiar with these plants.

Samson Gwali, Lecturer, Biodiversity and Plant Taxonomy,Department of Environmental Forestry, Masindi. Uganda

__________________________________________________________________


nyandaruensis described by Prof. Pócs – East AfricanBryophytes XVIII. Two new Lejeuneaceae (Hepaticae) fromthe Aberdare Mountains (Kenya) in the Polish BotanicalJournal 47(1): xx-xx, 2002.

The next training course (of two weeks duration) will beannounced through bryonet and through our mailing list. Wemay (conditions permitting) organise a longer field trip forparticipants as we feel that practical experience is of utmostimportance.

In order to illustrate the content of this course, I herebypresent the agenda of the 4th and latest “Tropical-AfricaBryology Training Course”:

1st day: Arrival and registration of participants

Morning lecture: The diversity of bryophytes, life histories:alternation of generations; growth forms; ecology;substrata, climatic conditions of growth.

Afternoon laboratory: Presentation of the diversity oftropical bryophytes

2nd day:Morning: lecture session. Systematics of acrocarpous and

pleurocarpous mosses. Distribution patterns ofbryophytes. Status of bryological exploration in Africa.Herbaria with important African collections. Scientistsworking on African cryptogams and their researchactivities.

Afternoon: laboratory session: Identification of freshlycollected bryophytes

3rd day Morning: lecture session. Database of African Bryophytes.

Diversity, classification and identification ofbryophytes

Afternoon: laboratory session. Identification of freshlycollected bryophytes

4th dayMorning: lecture session. The diversity of hepaticae, life-

history, classification, study of thalloid and leafyliverworts. Gametophyte and sporophyte morphology,anatomy.

Afternoon: laboratory session: Identification of freshlycollected bryophytes.

5th day Morning: lecture session: The composition of tropical

bryofloras, Environmental conditions determiningbryophyte distribution. Altitudinal zonation ofbryophytes in tropical mountains. The evolution ofbryophytes. Isolation and speciation, dispersal anddisjunction. Adaptations to environmental conditions.Relics. Biodiversity and its expression.

Afternoon: laboratory session. Identification of difficultbryophyte taxa.

6th dayFree

7th and 8th day: Field work in the Aberdare mountains

9th day:Morning lecture: study of field collections from the

AberdaresAfternoon laboratory: study of field collections from the

Aberdares

10th day: Departure of Participants

Dr. Min S. Chuah-Petiot, Botany Department, University ofNairobi, Box 14576, Nairobi 00800, Kenya. E-mail:[email protected]

__________________________________________

Subscribe to the official IAB-email discussion list

BRYONETTo subscribe:

Please send a message to [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

__________________________________________________________________


COURSE ANNOUNCEMENT

International Course: Biology of Mosses, Liverworts and LichensJanuary 4-11, 2003; Navarino Island, Antarctic Province, Chile

This course is co-ordinated by Dr. Bernard Goffinet(University of Connecticut, USA) and Dr. William R. Buck(New York Botanical Garden, USA) who have invited theassistance of the following Chilean and internationalresearchers: M.Sc. Orlando Dollenz (Universidad deMagallanes), Dra. Francisca Massardo (Universidad deMagallanes), Dr. Juan Armesto (Fundación Senda Darwin,Universidad de Chile), Dr. Shaun Russell (International Centrefor Protected Landscapes, UK), Dr. Ricardo Rozzi (FundaciónOmora, Universidad de Magallanes).

Maximum number of students: 15 persons

Goals of the course

Much of the species diversity of cryptogams, such asbryophytes (i.e., mosses, liverworts and hornworts) andlichens, is generally considered to be found under tropicallatitudes. These cryptogams may, however, represent adominant component of ecosystems in temperate areas. Insouthern Chile, bryophytes and lichens compose much of thebiomass in peatlands, dominate the epiphytic flora inNothofagus forests, and are a diverse component of thevegetation along streams. In some areas the species diversityexceeds by a factor of ten that of vascular plants. Where theyare abundant these cryptogams perform fundamentalecological functions in nutrient cycles, regulation ofhydrological flows, and may play an important role as a foodsource and habitat for a wide range of animals, primarilyinvertebrates. This course will address taxonomic, ecologicaland conservation aspects of the non-vascular flora, withemphasis in the southern extreme of the Americas. Thisknowledge is relevant for the conservation of biodiversitybecause it permits the incorporation of this poorly known florainto the scientific understanding and the applied assessmentsof terrestrial ecosystems. The course is directed at advancedstudents and researchers interested in the austral temperate

region of South America. No previous knowledge ofcryptogams or microscopy is required, but will enhance theexperience.

Location

The course will be held in the small city of Puerto Williams onIsla Navarino, the southernmost inhabited island in the world.The island is located on the Beagle Channel, south ofArgentinean Tierra del Fuego. Accommodation will bedormitory style housing. Habitats within walkingdistance of Puerto Williams include Nothofagus forests,Sphagnum-dominated peatlands, and alpine areas (above 600m). Puerto Williams is primarily a Chilean military base, but anumber of establishments are present which serve the familiesas well as passengers of cruise ships that stop there.Photographs of Isla Navarino can be seen on the web athttp://www.victory-cruises.com/Dientes.html. A Chilean website that will give you an idea of the weather on Isla Navarinocan be found at http://www.meteochile.cl/.

Cost

The estimated costs for international students are: US$ 1100(which will include materials, roundtrip tickets Santiago-PuntaArenas, Punta Arenas-Puerto Williams, lodging and basicfood) plus the international ticket to Santiago, Chile (to bearranged by each student).

If you are interested in participating in the course, pleasecontact Dra. Francisca Massardo (email:[email protected]). She is in charge of theadministrative preparation of this course. Please note thatplaces are limited because about half the students will comefrom Chile and Argentina.

Source: BRYONET

__________________________________________________________________


LITERATURE COLUMN Editor: Johannes Enroth

Kruijer, H.: Hypopterygiaceae of the world.Blumea Suppl. 13: 1–388 (2002). Paperback, ISBN 90-71236-51-X. Advertised price 70 €.

Nationaal Herbarium Nederland, Universiteit Leiden branch, P.O. Box 9514, 2300 RA Leiden, NLWeb site: http://nhncml.leidenuniv.nl

This is the first serious professional monograph of theHypopterygiaceae. Kruijer recognizes seven genera and, ofthe ca. 160 validly published species, retains a reasonable 21.The genera are Cyathophorum (with seven species; includingCyathophorella), Hypopterygium (seven species),Dendrocyathophorum (one species), Lopidium (two species),Dendrohypopterygium (two species; a new and paraphyleticgenus), Canalohypoterygium (one species) and Catharomnion(one species). Kruijer’s convincing phylogenetic analysis,based on morphological data, shows that the family ismonophyletic, a notion that has recently been disputed bysome other researchers.

Apart form the phylogenetic analysis, this is basically a”traditional” taxonomic monograph. What strikes me is howmeticulously Kruijer has carried out the work, apparentlynever missing a detail. The descriptions and nomenclaturalconsiderations are accurate and the versatile, highly readablediscussions reflect clarity and depth of taxonomic as well asbiogeographic thought. I especially enjoyed reading Chapter 7,Distribution and biogeography, which, in addition to observed

facts, unavoidably contains speculative scenarios that howeverare always well founded and clearly elaborated.

As the high number of previously described species andextensive new synonymy implies, many of the species aremorphologically very variable. Kruijer manages to convince atleast me that he has succeeded to tackle the taxonomicproblems inherent in such a ”multidimensional”morphological space. It is no surprise that the work has takenseveral years to complete (most of the excellent habit sketcheswere drawn already in 1994–96).

It disappoints me somewhat that it is really difficult to find inKruijer’s work anything substantial to be critical of. Well, OK,the name Tangney is consistently misspelled (”Tangley”). TheNetherlands has a great history in bryology and it is reallycomforting to know that the tradition is being carried on insuch a beautiful way. Young bryologists: if you are not quitesure how to do high-quality traditional monographictaxonomy, just take this book as an example!

Johannes Enroth

Sale: Edwin B. Bartram "Mosses of Guatemala"

The Chicago Field Museum has a supply of the 1972 reprint of"Mosses of Guatemala" by Edwin B. Bartram published by theChicago Natural History Museum in 1949 (442 pages and 190figures). This is a comprehensive work on the moss flora ofGuatemala, and includes notes on affinities of the Guatemalanflora with that of the surrounding and contributory regions.The Field Museum wishes to offer these at US$4 per copy.Please contact Dr. Matt von Konrat if interested or requirefurther details, e.g., the form in which we would wish to

receive payment. As a gesture of goodwill to developingnations, Dr. von Konrat is willing to discuss alternative meansof payment, e.g., gift of herbarium material.

Matt von Konrat, Collections Manager (Bryophytes andPteridophytes), Department of Botany, The Field Museum,1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60605-2496,U.S.A., Phone: (312) 665-7864; Fax: 312 665-7158. Email:[email protected]

http://nhncml.leidenuniv.nl/

__________________________________________________________________


New publication on Notothylas of the Indian subcontinent

This new publication on the "Notothylaceae of India andNepal - A Morphotaxonomic Revision" (271 pages, with 46B&W and 4 colour plates), written by Dr D K Singh, Joint Director, Botanical Survey of India, Dehradun, has just beenreleased. This monograph presents the result of a morpho-taxonomic revision carried out on eleven species of the genusNotothylas Sull. from India and Nepal. The studyencompasses critical comparative evaluation of morphological

and anatomical details of thallus, chloroplasts, gametangia,involucres, and the structure and organisation of capsule wall,spores and elaters. The distribution pattern of the currentlyrecognised species of the genus in the world, and itsphytogeographical significance, has also been discussed. Formore information, please contact Dr D K Singh:[email protected] / [email protected])

Register of taxonomic projects

At present there is no index of taxonomic projects (alpha-taxanomic as well as molecular systematic), of who in theworld is currently working on which species, genera orfamilies. A couple of years ago, there were the IAB directorieswhich had this information. However, these print media arequickly outdated. Therefore, I considered filling this gap by anonline service, which is perpetually updated. For thispurpose, I installed a data bank on our bryology server, inwhich the necessary information can be added online to a datafile. This allows everyone to get an overview of all ongoingmonographs and revisions. This register needs noadministration, since everybody has free access to this serverand can post the information themselves.

To make use of this new possibility: 1. Connect to www.uni-bonn.de/bryologie/ and click logo2. For the English version, click the British flag (bottom left

side)3. Click AG Bryology. On this page you will find "searchable

databases", which you might use, too, such as the recentGerman bryological literature or our bryologicalbibliography (31.000 titles).

4. Click register of taxonomic projects. You will be connectedwith our data server

5. Click Register. The database will open. Unfortunately themenu of the database program is in German, but sinceEnglish and German have common roots, you will

understand e.g. that "Neuer Datensatz" means new dataset.Then a data mask opens in which you may enter thenecessary details. Please indicate the taxa of your study, theperiod of your study, your name, address and e-mail, thegeographical range (e.g. E-Asia or worldwide) andcheckmark the fields for taxonomic or molecular study withan upper X.

So far, there are 23 projects registered.

Further use will provide better transparency with regard toongoing taxonomic research. However, the success of thisinitiative depends on the degree of participation, and thereforeI encourage everyone to make use of this new facility.

Together with the membership list of the Bryological WorkingGroup of Germany, this is the only read & write database onour server. The other data files are read-only. We can addother databases to this data server, so if anyone has data theywish to share, they can contact me. Also any other commentsand suggestions for future additional “read & write databases”are appreciated.

Jan-Peter Frahm, Botanisches Institut der Universität,Meckenheimer Allee 170, D 53115 Bonn. Tel. +49(0) 228 7321 21; Fax: +49(0) 228 73 3120/ website: www.uni-bonn.de/bryologie/

__________________________________________________________________


IN FOCUS

Bryological Research News from China

Cao Tong provided the following news about bryologicalactivities in China. About 35 Chinese IAB-members areactive in different fields of bryological research.

• Publications

Two books of Flora Bryophytorum Sinicorum, Volume 6(Hookeriales, Hypnobryales), edited by P. C. Wu, and theMoss Flora of China, English Edition, vol.6 were published in2002. Flora Bryophytorum Sinicorum vol. 9 edited by GaoChien, the first of four volumes dealing with Chineseliverworts, will be published by end of this year. FloraYunnanica vol 18 edited by Li Xinjiang, dealing with part ofthe mosses in Yunnan Province, Southwest China was alsopublished recently.

• Research Projects

Additional to the editing work for the Flora BryophytorumSinicorum and the Moss Flora of China, several other researchprojects are taking place at this moment and are supported bythe Nature Science Foundation of China (NSFC). Theseinclude: the taxonomic revision of Chinese Brachytheciaceaeby Wang Youfang, East China Normal University, Shanghai;Effects of light and CO2 increase on Bryophytes by WuYuhuan, Institute of Applied Ecology, Academia Sinica,Shenyang; and Genetic diversity of representative taxa ofbryophyte genera endemic to China and East Asia by CaoTong, Shanghai Teachers University. There are also someprojects supported by local governments, such as Biologicalindicator value of cryptogams (bryophytes, lichens, algae andferns) for environmental changes in Shanghai City by CaoTong; Studies of spores of Chinese bryophytes with SEM andTEM by Yu Jing, Shanghai Teachers University and Bryofloraof Hebei by Zhao Jiancheng, Hebei Normal University,Shijiazhua etc.

• International cooperation

Zhu Rui-liang, China-East Normal University, Shanghai,received a Humboldt Foundation Fellowship for post-doctoralresearch on Lopholejeunea of Asia (University of Gottingen,Germany). Zhang Chaohui of Guizhou Normal University,Guiyang, is specializing in bryophyte ecology at ReadingUniversity (U.K.). In co-operation with South Koreanbotanists from Korean University, Cao Tong and hiscolleagues at the Institute of Applied Ecology organized inAugust a botanical survey along the Yalu River near theborder between China and North Korea. In September, Dr HeSi of Missouri Botanical Garden visited the Botanical Instituteof the Academia Sinica, Beijing.

• Students

Sun Jun and Zhang Yuanming (supervised by Cao Tong),obtained their Ph.D. degrees at the Institute of AppliedEcology in June this year. Their respective theses are “Studiesof Lophoziaceae in China” and “Biodiversity and Ecology ofBryophytes at Sangong River Valley, Xinjiang, SouthwestChina”. Li Xiuqin, a student of Zhao Jiangcheng, HebeiNormal University, received her Master Degree in June with athesis entitled “Study of Pleucarp mosses of Hebei Province”.

• Meetings

The first mini-conference on the most endangered bryophytesof China is planned for May 2003 in Shanghai. Benito Tan,National University of Singapore, is applying for money fromthe IAB to organize this meeting. The conference will beorganized in collaboration with Cao Tong at ShanghaiTeachers University.

Cao Tong and Yu Jin, College of Life and EnvironmentalScience, Shanghai Teachers University, Shanghai 200234. E-mail: [email protected]


_____________________________________________________Page 14 The Bryological Times, Issue 107 – October 2002

THESES IN BRYOLOGY Editor: Bill Buck

As reported in the Bryological Times (99:17, 1999), the International Association of Bryologists has decided to begin a repository ofbryological theses. These theses will be housed in the Library of the New York Botanical Garden. They will be available viainterlibrary loan. The NYBG Library online catalogue (CATALPA) may be viewed at http://www.nybg.org/bsci/libr/Catalog.html.As theses arrive, bibliographic data and a brief synopsis will be published in this column (see examples below). Bryological theses forany degree, covering any aspect of bryology in any language, will be included. Please send theses to Bill Buck at the address above.Those who want to have their theses included in the “Theses in Bryology Column”, but who cannot afford to send a copy of the thesescan apply for financial support. Please refer to the preliminary notice (cited above) for information on financial assistance from IABfor reproduction of theses.

Câmara, Paulo Eduardo Aguiar Saraiva. 2002.Levantamento da brioflora das matas de galeria daReserva Ecológica do IBGE, RECOR, Distrito Federal.Master's thesis, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil.[x] 115 pp. + VI appendices (includes lists, tables, figures,photographs and glossary]. In Portuguese with Englishabstract. Current address of author: Universidade deBrasília, UnB, Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, AlaSul, Depto. de Botânica, Brasília, DF, Brazil 70000-000. E-mail: [email protected].

This master's thesis is an inventory of the bryophytes in thegallery forest in the Reserva Ecológica of the InstitutoBrasileiro de Geografia e Estatística, RECOR, in the capitaldistrict of Brazil, 35 km from the centre of the city of Brasília,at ca. 15°57'S, 47°53'W. It has an area of 1350 hectares and ismostly composed of cerrado vegetation. In the study, 40mosses, 31 hepatics, and one anthocerote were found, with 32new to the Distrito Federal. Tisserantiella minutissima is citedfrom Brazil for only the third time. Keys to the taxa arepresented, and most of the mosses are illustrated.

Gallego Morales, María Teresa. 2002. Revisión taxonómicadel género Syntrichia Brid. (Pottiaceae, Musci) en el áreacircunmediterránea y Macaronesia. Doctoral thesis,Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain. [xii] 293 pp. InSpanish. Current address of author: Departamento deBiología Vegetal (Botánica), Facultad de Biología,Universidad de Murcia, E-30100 Murcia, Spain. E-mailaddress: unknown [probably [email protected]].

This doctoral thesis examines the genus Syntrichia in thecircum-Mediterranean area and Macaronesia, based on thestudy of ca. 1100 specimens. Twenty-three (23) taxa arerecognized. Nomenclatural novelties proposed are S.caninervis var. pseudodesertorum and S. subpapillosissima;nine taxa are lectotypified; and fifteen new synonyms areprovided. All species are described, illustratedphotographically, and mapped. The principal characters todistinguish the taxa are mostly gametophytic, includingpapillosity of the laminal cells, cross-sectional anatomy of thecosta, laminal cell size, curvature of the leaf margins, and thenumber of cell layers in the lamina.

Heinrichs, Jochen. 2002. A taxonomic revision ofPlagiochila sect. Hylacoetes, sect. Adiantoideae and sect.Fuscoluteae in the Neotropics with a preliminarysubdivision of neotropical Plagiochilaceae into ninelineages. Doctoral thesis, University of Göttingen,Germany. Bryophytorum Bibliotheca 58: 1-184,Appendices 1-5 (unpaginated), including 58 plates(Appendix 1). In English. Current address of author:Albrecht von Haller Institut für Pflanzenwissenschaften,Abteilung Systematische Botanik, Universität Göttingen,Untere Karspüle 2, D-37073 Göttingen, Germany. E-mailaddress: [email protected].

This published doctoral thesis examines a derived clade withinthe neotropical species of Plagiochila. The three sectionsstudied form a monophyletic unit, based on ITS sequence data.Members of sect. Hylacoetes are characterized by capsule wallepidermal cells without thickenings on the walls, and fan-shaped, terminal androecia. In its synonymy are P. sect.Cucullifoliae, P. sect. Superbae, P. subsect. Macrotrichae andthe genera Steereochila and Szweykowskia. The sectioncontains 16 species, including the newly described P.patriciae as well as the new combinations P. dimorpha var.ecuadorica (for the previous single species of Steereochila)and P. superba var. macrotricha. Section Adiantoideae has acapsule wall epidermis whose cells have nodulose thickenedwalls and simple, intercalary androecia. Within its synonymyare P. sect. Cristatae, P. sect. Grandifoliae and P. subsect.Notidophilae. Four species are embraced in the section.Section Fuscoluteae is characterized by species with wax overthe surface of laminal cells. Synonymy includes P. sect.Bursatae, P. sect. Caversiae and Acrobolbus subgen.Xenopsis. Eight species are recognized in the section and thenew combination P. heterophylla var. beauverdii is proposed.All taxa are keyed, described and illustrated.

Jones, Paul Robin. 2002. Restoration ecology of the mosscomponent of biological soil crusts of the western SnakeRiver plain, Idaho. Master's thesis, Boise State University,Boise, Idaho, U.S.A. vii + 63 pp. In English. Currentaddress of author: 2141 NW North Hill Dr., Apt. A,Grants Pass, OR 97526, U.S.A. E-mail address: unknown.

http://www.nybg.org/bsci/libr/Catalog.html

__________________________________________________________________


Biological soil crusts are an important component of manyarid and semi-arid ecosystems. Those that are predominantlycomposed of mosses occupy sagebrush steppe of the westernSnake River plain. Invasion of this area by the exotic grass,Bromus tectorum, has led to alternation of native vegetationand degradation of biological soil crusts. This master's studyinvestigated the possibility of reintroduction of mosses intothese disturbed habitats, using moss fragments. Bryumargenteum, Ceratodon purpureus and Syntrichia ruralis wereused. It was determined that moss inoculation has potential asa useful tool for restoration/ rehabilitation of sagebrush steppe.Opisso Mejía, Jasmín Alexandra. 2001. Contribución alconocimiento de los musgos pleurocárpicos de la provinciade San Ignacio (Cajamarca). Tesis para optar el tituloProfesional de Biólogo con mención en Botánica. x + 112

pp. In Spanish with English abstract. E-mail address ofauthor: <[email protected]>.

This equivalent of a bachelor's thesis treats the 40 species ofpleurocarpous mosses (in 15 families and 32 genera) knownfrom the province of San Ignacio, department of Cajamarca innorthern Peru. Collections were made from 1100 m to 2600 m.All species are keyed, described and illustrated. New to Peruare Lindigia debilis, Trachypus viridulus, Acroporiumestrellae and Lepidopilum cuspidans. Twenty-five species arenew to the department of Cajamarca.

William R. Buck, Institute of Systematic Botany, New York,Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY 10458-5126, U.S.A. Email:[email protected]

CONSERVATION COLUMN Editor: Tomas HallingbäckInvitation to participate in the IAB workshop

'Bryophyte Conservation Current Status and Future Work'2003 July 18-19 in Mérida, Venezuela

The IAB Standing Committee for Endangered bryophytestogether with the IUCN SSC Bryophyte specialist group andin co-operation with Dr. Yelitza León at the University of LosAndes, Merida, Venezuela is organizing a workshop onthreatened bryophyte species and habitats called 'BryophyteConservation - Current Status and Future Work'.

We would like to invite you to an international workshop thatwill take place in the days before the IAB Symposium 2003'Structure - Dynamics Evolution'. The workshop will focus onhow to better consider vulnerable bryophyte taxa, how to stopthe destruction of rich bryophyte habitats and to discuss howthe bryologist can contribute to the conservation of ourbryophyte flora.

The workshop is intended for those interested in all aspects ofbryophyte conservation, bryophyte ecology and questionsrelated to population dynamics of rare and declining species.In order to receive the first draft program you need to make apreliminary registration.

Please send your e-mail or letter to:[email protected] or to the local organizer DrYelitza León [email protected] before November 1. More

detailed information will be sent after your preliminaryregistration.

Below is a preliminary list of topics that will be discussed:

• Red-book initiatives in Latin America, and other parts ofthe world.

• Educational programs on the environmental role andimportance of bryophytes

• Conservation strategies in the tropics: What to save andhow to re-establish species and habitats?

• Bryophytes as indicators of subtle changes in habitat andimpact of forest fragmentation on bryophyte vegetation

• Ecological consequences of bryophyte disappearance(incl. harvesting) in tropical ecosystems

• Regulations, research and scientific collaboration amongbryologists for the study of bryophytes in the tropics

Tomas Hallingback, Swedish University of AgriculturalSciences, Species Information Center, P O Box 7007, SE-75007 Uppsala, Sweden Email:[email protected].

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________



__________________________________________________________________


NEW AND INTERESTING RECORDSThe extraordinary hepatic Myriocolea irrorata rediscovered.

Rob Gradstein and Nicole Noeske report this unique find fromEcuador

On 25 September of this year we have rediscoveredMyriocolea irrorata Spruce (Lejeuneaceae), a remarkableSouth American liverwort of periodically flooded rivermargins. The species was only known from type material fromEcuador and had not been sighted since its discovery byRichard Spruce about 150 years ago.

Myriocolea irrorata is the only species in the genusMyriocolea and morphologically unique: "the habit of thisplant is very peculiar and unlike that of any hepatic" (Spruce,Hepaticae Amazonicae et Andinae, p. 307). The leafy shoots,hanging away from the twigs of small shrubs at the edge of theriver, are robust, up to 5 cm long, and have large, undulate-crisped leaves and numerous short branches, each branchbearing a globose head of 20-60 densely clustered perianths."Anything more alien to the aspect of a Lejeunea cannot wellbe imagined... (Spruce, l.c.).

Our material of Myriocolea comes from the Rio Topo, thesame river where Spruce gathered the plant. The Topo is awild and fearsome tributary of the Rio Pastaza, at the roots ofthe Amazon River, and its rocky margins are usually flooded

by the furiously-rushing waters, making them inaccessible forcollecting. We were extremely lucky, however, to find theriver very calm and water level low. Myriocolea was veryabundant on the rocky shores and we were able to make asplendid collection of the plant. Accompanying it were otherrheophytic South American liverwort treasures such asMyriocoleopsis gymnocolea and Potamolejeunea (s.l.).

We will deposit duplicates of our rich gatherings in the mainEcuadorian and other institutional herbaria with tropicalliverwort collections. A paper on the unique characteristics ofMyriocolea, including description of several previouslyunknown features, and the phylogenetic position, ecology andconservation status of the plant, is in preparation.

Finally, we acknowledge the invaluable help of theornithologist and orchid specialist Lou Jost, Baños, expert onthe Pastaza region, who guided us to the location ofMyriocolea.

Rob Gradstein & Nicole Noeske, University of Goettingen,Germany.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

The only actual records of Notothylas orbicularis in Europe

During the last weekend of September 2002, about 20 personswere creeping on their knees across the last remaining stubble-fields in the Vogelsberg region, NE of Frankfurt in Germany.They were members of the Bryological Working Group ofGermany, accompanied by Tomas Hallingbäck from Sweden,who came especially to search for Notothylas orbicularis, thepurpose of this field trip.

This species, although widespread in North America, has beenfound only a very few times in Europe: in upper Italy, LowerAustria, Slowakia, and in three German Länder (Bavaria,Saxony and, in 1980, in this region, Hessen). The distributionrange does not make much sense, and collections ofNotothylas in a nursery in Austria indicate that the speciesmay not be native in Europe. In 1980, the amateur bryologistJosef Futschig found the species about a dozen times togetherwith the European endemic Anthoceros neesii in Hessenwithin an area of about hundred square kilometres. Hessen isconsidered the last area where Notothylas may occur inEurope, as this species has not been observed elsewhere forseveral decades. As we know, most bryologists are curious, so

also Josef Futschig. He kept this interesting find secret,although he informed some close friends, albeit in a verydiscrete way. Futschig showed Notothylas to Ruprecht Düll

__________________________________________________________________


Notothylas orbicularis

the same autumn, but published the find. In 1983, however, aletter appeared in the Bryological Times n° 12, written byFutschig and addressed to Ricleff Grolle. The letter is the onlyGerman contribution in the Times. How this letter got into theTimes remains a secret. As the letter was addressed to Grolle(“Lieber Herr Dr. Grolle”), I assume that Grolle forwarded theletter to the Bryological Times as he knew that Futschig kepthis findings secret. In other words, the publication of the lettermay have been a planned indiscretion with regard to the greatimportance of these findings. Maybe Stanley Greene, who’sGerman was good enough to understand and recognize theold-fashioned style of the letter, published it out of curiosity.When Futschig died in 1984, his herbarium was given to anon-bryologist friend, who nevertheless searched theherbarium for interesting records and published these in 1987.

Futschig found Notothylas orbicularis again in this region thenext year, but not in 1982, when the climatic conditions wereapparently not optimal for ephemerals. According to myknowledge, Gottfried Schwab found this species in the areafor the last time in 1993. These records remained forgottenuntil 2001, when my student Dietmar Quandt wanted tosequence the species for a phylogenetic tree and when Iplanned to organise a special inventory search for Notothylasin Hessen.

As it makes more fun and as it increases the probability offinding this rarity, I announced this as a special fieldtrip to theBryological Working Group of Germany. We specificallyalso invited regional nature conservation organisations,something we never did before but something which should bedone more to raise interest in bryophytes and bryologicalresearch. (For the same purpose, a press release wasdisseminated after the excursion).

The first day of the field trip was frustrating: at this elevationmany of the former arable fields were converted into meadowsor were already ploughed when we arrived. The remainingfields were either managed in a very intensive way (excess useof dung, herbicides or artificial fertilizer): Consequently noNotothylas was found on the remaining less intensivelymanaged stubble fields, although we found lots of Anthocerosand Riccia species (A. agrestis and the very rare A. neesii;Riccia glauca, R. sorocarpa, R. bifurca, R. subbifurca, R.warnstorfii and also R. ciliata). At the dinner table, KlausWeddeling presented 2 tiny fragments of “what could perhapsbe Notothylas”. So we decided to go with all men and women(two young ladies from Berlin) to that stubble field near thevillage of Wettges (450 m alt.; 50° 24´ 45,4" N and 9°19´44,5" E) and indeed, within two hours 11 specimens ofNotothylas were found. A part of the collected material wasset aside for sequencing and for an agar culture as we havebegun an ex-situ conservation programme for threatenedGerman bryophyte species in Bonn (a programme, which alsoincludes plants of the only record - a mat of some squarecentimetres - of Dichelyma capillaceum)

On our return from the fieldtrip, we received informationthrough our German bryonet, that Volker Buchbender foundboth A. neesii and Notothylas in the Westerwald, a montaneregion not far from the Vogelsberg. Not only is A. neesii evenmore rare than Notothylas, it is also an endemic Europeanspecies, which only occurs in Poland, Austria and Germany(Söderstrom et al. 2002). This species was described byProskauer in 1959 on the basis of herbarium specimenscollected by Nees around 1830 in Silesia, now Poland, andwas known until 1959 only from these ancient collections.

Germany has also implications for nature –conservation.Indeed, Notothylas is one of the 31 bryophyte species,included in Annex II of the Habitats Directive, one of the corepieces for nature-conservation legislation in the EuropeanUnion. (The Habitats Directive is a EU-legislation toimplement the Bern Convention on the Conservation ofEuropean Wildlife and Natural Habitats of the EuropeanCouncil, which covers the entire European area). TomasHallingbäck told us during lunch break how bryophytesreceived “by chance” European protection. (The annexes ofthe Bern Convention were revised simultaneously with thefirst ECCB Conference in Uppsala, so that the ECCB couldlobby for the inclusion of bryophytes in the annexes.Lichenologists were not as lucky and lichens are not includedin the Convention annexes). Because of this EU-protection forNothotylas orbicularis, the EU-member states have todesignate Special Areas of Conservation for this species andare required to maintain in these areas a “favourable state ofconservation”. In Germany, it is the regions (Länder), whichare responsible for nature conservation policy. Thus, for theconservation of this species, the Land Hessen has to act.However, to my information, Hessen is one of the least activestates in this respect (e.g. it is the only state with no bryophytered list), despite the occurrence of N. orbicularis and A. neesii.

The confirmed occurrence of Notothylas orbiculars inApparently, in 2001 the regional Ministry of Environmentasked a botanist to survey Notothylas in Hessen (but in vain),and now another botanists is doing the job, apparently withbetter results. This find is proof that our regional bryologicalworking group can play an important role here and that itshould be more consulted by the Länder authorities to assist inthe inventorying work and the draw-up of management plansfor threatened bryophyte species”.

The measures to conserve Notothylas should involve both “insitu” and “ex situ” conservation. And for “in situ”conservation, the Länder authorities should designate the areasto protect this species and should collaborate with the farmingcommunity to establish a network of extensively managedarable fields to protect it. Most importantly, extensive farming(or traditional methods of agriculture, avoiding over-fertilization or use excessive use of herbicides) is the key tothe protection of this endangered species. The EU LIFE-Nature fund or the Rural Development Plans can beapproached to provide the financial support to protect thisspecies.

__________________________________________________________________


In Hessen, the conservation of Notothylas orbicularis may bea model for the conservation of threatened arable-land flora inEurope and of a change in farming policy for the conservationof non-flowering plant species

Bibliography. Söderstrom, L. E. Urmi and J. Vana. 2002.Distribution of Hepaticae and Anthocertoae in Europe andMacaronesia. Lindbergia 27:3-47

Jan-Peter Frahm (Email: [email protected]

Searching for Notothylas orbicularis in the stubble field near the village of Wettges, Hessen, Germany.

VACANCY

The Department of Biology at Southwest Missouri StateUniversity invites applications for a tenure-track position inPlant Systematics at the level of Assistant Professor.Requirements for the job include a Ph.D. with a specialty inplant systematics and a record of peer-reviewed publication.Primary duties include teaching courses in general biology andintroductory and advanced courses in plant taxonomy andsystematics, curation of the Ozarks Regional Herbarium (SMS;http://biology.smsu.edu/herbarium/), student advisement,research and publication, and involvement with the graduate(master's) program. Salary will be commensurate withexperience. The starting date is 11 August 2003. SMSU(http://www.smsu.edu) is the second largest public university inMissouri, with a total enrolment of over 18,000. The Biology

Department (http://biology.smsu.edu) currently has 18 full-timefaculty, approximately 425 undergraduate majors, and a strongresearch-based Master's program with a steady population ofabout 40 students. Applicants should submit a letter of application specifyingteaching interests and philosophy, research interests, acurriculum vita, copies of transcripts, and three letters ofreference to: Dr. John Heywood, Chair, Plant SystematicsSearch Committee, Department of Biology, Southwest MissouriState University, Springfield, MO 65804-0095. Telephone:(417)836-5149. Fax: (417)836-4204. E-mail:[email protected]. Review of applications will begin 1December 2002.Source: BRYONET


__________________________________________________________________


IAB-NEWSIAB WORLD CONFERENCE MERIDA 2003Now there is a web address available for the XV Word Congress in Bryology. Mérida 2003: www.merida-2003.comThe organisers would like to invite students to participate in their student session. If interested please write directly to Dr. Jan-PeterFrahm e-mail [email protected]

STANLEY GREENE RESEARCH AWARDThe Stanley Greene Research Awards, given biannually, provide funds for travel in order to increase research capabilities and developnew international linkages. Please send your application by e-mail to Dale Vitt, chair of committee, e-mail address:[email protected]

Include:• Brief statement of travel objectives;• Dates of travel• Why this travel is important for your research

Travel to international meetings is eligible in this program.Application deadline: May 1, 2003. Travel must be completed between July 1, 2003 and January 1, 2005.

PERSONALIAProf. Tamás Pócs, elected to be an ordinary member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in May 2001, gave his inaugural addressat the Academy on the 15th of October 2002, entitled: "The cryptobiotic crust and its role in the terrestrial ecosystems."

Prof. Dr. Coa Tong moved to Shanghai in September of 2001. His new address is: College of Life and Environmental Science,Shanghai Teachers University, Shanghai 200234; Email:[email protected]

Richard Zander and Patricia Eckel have transferred the Flora of North America Center for Bryophytes from the Buffalo Museum ofScience, Buffalo, New York, to the Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, Missouri, USA. The support of Bob Magill and MarshallCrosby in facilitating this move is much appreciated. Both Richard and Patricia act as members of the Bryology Group there, workingon the bryophyte volumes for the Flora of North America and doing research. Their new email addresses [email protected] and [email protected].

IAB: CALL FOR NOMINATIONSThe I.A.B. will elect 1 vice president and 5 council members for 4 years terms to replace those officers whose terms expire.

Vice President to replace: SchofieldCouncillors to replace: Buck, Cao, Frahm, Ignatov, and Seppelt[Councillors who continue until 2005: Crandall-Stotler, Deguchi, De Luna, Glime, and Longton]Please send the names of members that you would like to nominate for these positions to the chair of the elections committee:Dr. R. Stotler, Dept. of Plant Biology, S.I.U., Carbondale, IL 62901-6509, USA, e-mail: [email protected]: 618-453-3441.

Nominations will close December 31, 2002. Elections Committee:S. R. GradsteinR. E. Stotler, ChairD. H. Vitt


__________________________________________________________________


The Bryological Times, founded in 1980 by S.W. Greene(1928-1989) is a newsletter published for the InternationalAssociation of Bryologists. Items for publication in TheBryological Times are to be sent to the Editors or RegionalEditors, except for those for the regular columns, which maygo direct to the column editors.

EditorsGeert Raeymaekers, Ecosystems LTD, Generaal Wahislaan21, B-1030 Brussels, Belgium. FAX + 32 2 646 84 66 or E-mail: [email protected]

Terry Hedderson, Botany Department, University of CapeTown, Private Bag, 7701 Rondebosch, South Africa. FAX: +27 021 650 4041. E-mail: [email protected]

Regional EditorsN.-America: René Belland, Devonian Botanical Garden,University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2EI, Canada . E-mail: [email protected]: Inès Sastre-De Jesus, Dept. Of Biology,University of Puerto Rico, P.O. Box 5000, Mayaguez, PuertoRico; 00681-5000. E-mail: [email protected]. & E. Asia: Cao Tong, College of Life and EnvironmentalScience, Shanghai Teachers University, Shanghai 200234;Email: [email protected] SE Asia: Benito Tan, Department of Biological Sciences,National University of Signapore, Singapore [email protected] and Oceania: Rod Seppelt, Australian AntarcticDivision, Kingston, Tasmania 7050 Australia. E-mail:[email protected]

Column EditorsConservation Column: Tomas Hallingback, Swedish SpeciesInformation Centre, Swedish University of AgriculturalSciences, P.O. Box 7007, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden, Fax:+46 18 67 34 80. E-mail: [email protected] Column: Johannes Enroth, Dept. Ecol. & System.,P.O. Box 7, FIN-0014 University of Helsinki, Finland, Fax: +358 9 191 8656. E-mail: [email protected] Profiles: position open Theses in Bryology: William B. Buck, Institute of SystematicBotany, NY Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY 10458-5126,U.S.A. E-mail: [email protected] . Tropical Bryology Column: Tamás Pócs, EszterházyTeacher’s College, Dept. of Botany, Eger, Pf. 43, H—3301,Hungary. E-mail: [email protected]

ProductionGeert Raeymaekers, Ecosystems LTD, Brussels

UPCOMING MEETINGS

2002November 16-17. BBS Workshop “Arable Bryophytes”.

Contact Dr. Ron Porley. Email [email protected].

2003

April 10-15. Spring field Meeting of the British BryologicalSociety: Norfolk/Suffolk (East Anglia). Contact thelocal secretary, Richard Fisk, 1 Paradise Row, Ringsfield,Beccles, Suffolk, NR34 8LQ. Tel. 01502 714968; email:[email protected]. For more information:website: http://www.rbge.org.uk/bbs/bbs.htm

July 7-14: Summer field Meeting of the British BryologicalSociety: Kindrogan, Perthshire. This meeting will bebased at the Scottish Field Studies Centre at Kindrogan. Itis hoped to tie in the meeting with a workshop onSchistidium run by Hans Blom. .Contact the localsecretary, Martin Robinson, Dalreoch Farm, Enochdhu,Blairgowrie, Perthshire, PH10 7PF; e-mail:[email protected]. For more information:website: http://www.rbge.org.uk/bbs/bbs.htm

July 26-31: Annual meeting of the American Bryologicaland Lichenological Society together with the annualmeeting of the Botanical Society of America in Mobile,Alabama. The ABLS is soliciting proposals for symposiato be held at the meeting. Please use the on-linesubmission forms for these on the Botany 2003 web site(http://www.botany2003.org).

July 23-27 15th. IAB World Conference on Bryology,Merida, Venezuela. Registration and information, seethe conference website: www.merida-2003.com. .For theworkshop "The Bryophyte Conservation – Current Statusand Future Work" on 18-19 July , consuilt the website:http://www.artdata.slu.se/guest/SSCBryo/SSCBryo.html

August 17-23. Fourth International Symbiosis SocietyCongress. As several bryological groups are working oncyanobacterial symbioses, David Richardson announcesthat the Fourth International Symbiosis Society Congresswill be held between at Saint-Mary’s University, Halifax,Nova Scotia, Canada. Contact: D. Richardson Tel.: 902-420-5493, Fax: 902-420-5261, [email protected]://people.bu.edu/dzook/

2005International Botanical Congress in Vienna, with meeting

of the IAB.

2007IAB meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Contact the local

organizers: Dr. Haji Mohamed and Dr. Amru N. Boyce,Fac. of Science, University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur50603, email: [email protected]



http://www.rbge.org.uk/bbs/bbs.htm

http://www.artdata.slu.se/guest/SSCBryo/SSCBryo.html

Documents

The Bryological Times n° 106bryology.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Bryological-Times-2002-107.pdfThe Bryological Times, Issue 106 – July 2002 Page 3 August 15th As we moved towards