Andreaea rupestris | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Division: | Bryophyta |
Subdivision: | Andreaeophytina |
Class: | Andreaeopsida |
Order: | Andreaeales |
Family: | Andreaeaceae |
Genus: | Andreaea |
Species: | A. rupestris |
Binomial name | |
Andreaea rupestris (Hedw.) | |
Andreaea rupestris is a species of moss in the class Andreaeopsida, are commonly referred to as the "lantern mosses" due to the appearance of their dehisced sporangia. It is typically found on smooth, acidic, exposed rock in the Northern hemisphere. It exhibits the common features of the genus Andreaea such as being acrocarpous, having dark pigmentation, lacking a seta, and bearing 4 lines of dehiscence in its mature sporangia, but can be further identified upon careful examination of its gametophytic leaves which have an ovate base to a more blunt apex compared to other similar species.
Andreaea rupestris is in the genus Andreaea, which has around 100 different species. [1]
It may be difficult to differentiate A. rupestris from some other species in its genus as it does bear some similar characteristics to other species. Some species which may be mistaken for A. rupestris are:
The appearance of Andreaea rupestris is dark in colour, varying from dark red/brown/green to black depending on its life stage. [2] [3] It grows in patches of dense, cushion-like tufts up to 2–3 cm high and has imbricate leaves in dry conditions. [2] [4] [3] In moist conditions, the leaves may be falcate-secund (curved to one side) yet this does not always hold true. [2] Unlike some other mosses, A. rupestris have biseriate rhizoids which aid in attaching the gametophyte to substrate. [5] [6]
The gametophyte leaves have an ovate base tapering to a blunt to acute apex [7] [4] and are less than 1mm in length. [2] They lack a costa and may have papillae on the dorsal side, particularly on the upper leaves of the stem. [3] The leaves are bordered by shorter, rhombic marginal cells and their laminal cells have thickened cell walls. [7] [4] Their perichaetial leaves are typically larger than their stem leaves. [8] In contrast to most bryophytes which have a filamentous protonemal stage, Andreaea rupestris have thalloid protonema that give rise to the leafy shoot of the gametophyte. [9] [10]
As characterized by the Andreaeopsida, Andreaea rupestris have small sporophytes which lack both an operculum and a seta. Instead of a seta, they have a pseudopodium derived from gametophytic tissue attached to the sporangium, extending from the perichaetium attached by a structure called the foot. Once fully mature, the sporangium will open along 4 vertical lines of dehiscence to release the spores inside. [1] The sporangium is hygroscopic as it will dehisce in dry conditions to release spores from the gaps, and will close back up in moist conditions. [11] The spores are red-brown in colour, usually larger than 20 μm in diameter, and lack elaters. [4] [3] [12]
Andreaea rupestris are typically found in cooler climates on surfaces or fissures of dry, siliceous, exposed rock such as granite. [8] [12] While they can also grow in neutral to mildly basic conditions, they are usually found on acidic rocks and cliff walls. They can be found from sea level to high elevations, but are more commonly associated with higher altitudes. [7] [13] Compared to other species in their genus, they can withstand a wider variety of moisture levels and are better at surviving in drier conditions. [2] They have been found to grow with other species of their genus such as Andreaea nivalis , A. blyttii, A. rigida, A. crassinervia, A. rothii ssp. rothii, A. rothii ssp. jalcata, A. alpina, and A. obovata. [14]
They are primarily distributed around the Northern hemisphere in North America, Europe, and Asia. [4] More specifically, they have been confirmed in Canada, [7] the United States, [13] Norway, [14] Britain, Ireland, [8] Kazakhstan, [15] Korea, [16] China, [4] Japan, [17] Central America, New Zealand, Antarctica [8] and more recently in 2018, Greece. [18]
The sporophyte and gametophyte represent two generations of A. rupestris, also known as the alternation of heteromorphic generations. The gametophyte stage starts with the haploid spore, which then germinates into a thalloid protonema. The protonema then gives rise to the leafy gametophyte which houses the male and female organs also known as the antheridia and archegonia, respectively.
Andreaea rupestris are autoicous, meaning that their male and female organs exist on separate branches within the same gametophyte. The close proximity of the antheridia and archegonia helps facilitate fertilization. The antheridia contain sperm that travel down the neck of an archegonium, which houses the egg, to fertilize it. When the egg is fertilized and becomes a diploid zygote, it then develops into the diploid sporangium. Note that the sporangium is attached to a haploid pseudopodium that was derived from gametophytic tissue. Through the process of meiosis, haploid spores are produced and released through the gaps of the dehisced sporangium. [12]
According to the BC Conservation Data Centre, this species is deemed "demonstrably widespread, abundant and secure" globally. [19] In British Columbia, it is labelled as "at the least risk of being lost". [20] [21]
Alternation of generations is the predominant type of life cycle in plants and algae. In plants both phases are multicellular: the haploid sexual phase – the gametophyte – alternates with a diploid asexual phase – the sporophyte.
Bryophytes are a group of land plants, sometimes treated as a taxonomic division, that contains three groups of non-vascular land plants (embryophytes): the liverworts, hornworts and mosses. In the strict sense, Bryophyta consists of the mosses only. Bryophytes are characteristically limited in size and prefer moist habitats although they can survive in drier environments. The bryophytes consist of about 20,000 plant species. Bryophytes produce enclosed reproductive structures, but they do not produce flowers or seeds. They reproduce sexually by spores and asexually by fragmentation or the production of gemmae. Though bryophytes were considered a paraphyletic group in recent years, almost all of the most recent phylogenetic evidence supports the monophyly of this group, as originally classified by Wilhelm Schimper in 1879. The term bryophyte comes from Ancient Greek βρύον (brúon) 'tree moss, liverwort', and φυτόν (phutón) 'plant'.
Hornworts are a group of non-vascular Embryophytes constituting the division Anthocerotophyta. The common name refers to the elongated horn-like structure, which is the sporophyte. As in mosses and liverworts, hornworts have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of genetic information; the flattened, green plant body of a hornwort is the gametophyte stage of the plant.
Funaria is a genus of approximately 210 species of moss. Funaria hygrometrica is the most common species. Funaria hygrometrica is called “cord moss” because of the twisted seta which is very hygroscopic and untwists when moist. The name is derived from the Latin word “funis”, meaning "a rope". In funaria root like structures called rhizoids are present.
Monoicy is a sexual system in haploid plants where both sperm and eggs are produced on the same gametophyte, in contrast with dioicy, where each gametophyte produces only sperm or eggs but never both. Both monoicous and dioicous gametophytes produce gametes in gametangia by mitosis rather than meiosis, so that sperm and eggs are genetically identical with their parent gametophyte.
Dawsonia superba is a moss in the class Polytrichaceae that is found in Australia, New Guinea, Malaysia and New Zealand. D. superba is the tallest self-supporting moss in the world, reaching heights of 60 cm (24 in). It has analogous structures to those in vascular plants that support large size, including hydroid and leptoid cells to conduct water and photosynthate, and lamellae that provide gas chambers for more efficient photosynthesis. D. superba is a member of the class Polytrichopsida, although it has a sporophyte that is unique from other hair-cap mosses.
Hypnodendron comosum, commonly known as palm moss or palm tree moss, is a ground moss which can be divided into two varieties: Hypnodendron comosum var. comosum and Hypnodendron comosum var. sieberi. Both Hypnodendron varieties most commonly grow in damp locations in the temperate and tropical rainforests of New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania in southern Australia and in New Zealand.
Splachnaceae is a family of mosses, containing around 70 species in 6 genera. Around half of those species are entomophilous, using insects to disperse their spores, a characteristic found in no other seedless land plants.
Pogonatum urnigerum is a species of moss in the family Polytrichaceae, commonly called urn haircap. The name comes from "urna" meaning "urn" and "gerere" meaning "to bear" which is believed to be a reference made towards the plant's wide-mouthed capsule. It can be found on gravelly banks or similar habitats and can be identified by the blue tinge to the overall green colour. The stem of this moss is wine red and it has rhizoids that keep the moss anchored to substrates. It is an acrocarpous moss that grows vertically with an archegonium borne at the top of each fertilized female gametophyte shoot which develops an erect sporophyte.
Climacium dendroides, also known as tree climacium moss, belongs in the order Hypnales and family Climaciaceae, in class Bryopsida and subclass Bryidae. It is identified as a "tree moss" due to its distinctive morphological features, and has four species identified across the Northern Hemisphere. The species name "dendroides" describes the tree-like morphology of the plant, and its genus name came from the structure of the perforations of peristome teeth. This plant was identified by Weber and Mohr in 1804. They often have stems that are around 2-10 cm tall and growing in the form of patches, looking like small palm-trees. They have yellow-green branches at the tip of stems. The leaves are around 2.5-3 mm long, with rounder stem leaves and pointier branch leaves. Their sporophytes are only abundant in late winter and early spring, and appears as a red-brown shoot with long stalk and cylindrical capsules.
Polytrichum strictum, commonly known as bog haircap moss or strict haircap, is an evergreen and perennial species of moss native to Sphagnum bogs and other moist habitats in temperate climates. It has a circumboreal distribution, and is also found in South America and Antarctica.
Andreaea rothii, or Roth's andreaea moss, is a species of moss in the family Andreaeaceae native to North America and parts of Europe. This plant was described in 1807 by Weber and Mohr.
Fissidens limbatus commonly known as Herzog's pocket-moss, is a moss in the family Fissidentaceae. This species is found growing in high elevations in tropical America in addition to the US, Mexico and Canada. Montagne first collected F. crispus in 1838.
Buxbaumia viridis, also known as the green shield-moss, is a rare bryophyte found sporadically throughout the northern hemisphere. The gametophyte of this moss is not macroscopically visible; the large, distinct sporophyte of B. viridis is the only identifying structure of this moss. This moss can be found singularly or in small groups on decaying wood, mostly in humid, sub-alpine to alpine Picea abies, Abies alba, or mixed tree forests. This moss is rare and conservation efforts are being made in most countries B. viridis is found in.
Syntrichia latifolia, formerly Tortula latifolia, and commonly known as water screw-moss, is a species of moss belonging to the family Pottiaceae. Syntrichia species differ from members of Tortula due to synapomorphic leaf qualities, such as different basal and distal cells, as well as different costal cross sections where Tortula has an abaxial epidermis and Syntrichia lacks one.
Hypnum is a genus of mosses belonging to the family Hypnaceae.
Andreaea nivalis, also known as snow rock-moss, is a species of moss in the Andreaea family found in Alaska, California, Oregon, Washington, Greenland, Spain, Japan, Russia and Poland. It is black and reddish, dioicous, and grows on wet, acidic rocks. It is threatened by droughts and global warming, and is a near-threatened species on the IUCN red list.
Andreaea blyttii, also commonly known as Blytt's rock moss, is a moss belonging to the family Andreaeaceae, commonly known as rock moss, granite moss, or lantern moss because of this family's unique sporangium. It is part of the genus Andreaea which is known for forming dark brownish or reddish-black carpets in high elevations. This species was first described by Schimper in 1855.
Timmia megapolitana, also known as Indian feather moss and warrior moss is a genus of moss in the family Timmiaceae and order Timmiales.
Dicranoloma billardierei is a species of bryophyte in the genus Dicranoloma. This moss is extremely common in wet rainforest habitats. In the field, Dicranoloma billardierei, is often confused with Dicranoloma robustum and Dicranoloma fasciatum. However, the short and obtuse nature of the leaves make this moss normally very distinctive.
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