Pine-lichen woodlands in north-central British Columbia show a long period of successional development where reindeer lichens (Cladina spp.) dominate plant cover at the forest floor surface. However, in mid- to late-successional stands lichen cover is replaced in a mosiac of surface microsites by feather moss mats (largely Pleurozium schreberi), with moss mats often burying lichen mats that previously had occupied these microsites. We have compared moss and lichen dominated microsites at this stage of stand development, looking at the influence of canopy structural variables and development of forest floor plant communities on microsite expression. Microsites with high feather moss mat cover had greater canopy leaf area index values, compared to microsites where lichen cover predominated. Leaf area index values were highly correlated with stand level structural variables, including basal area, total volume, and biomass of the dominant canopy tree species Pinus contorta. Changes in stand architecture were further associated with the accumulation of litter and organic matter at the forest floor surface. These factors suggest that the manipulation of stand structure in managed forests, for instance through partial-cut harvesting, may delay successional changes and promote continued lichen growth in these forest types. This is an important consideration in the management of pine-stands in northern B.C., where lichen mats provide significant forage values for caribou populations.

Each Christmas season, the abundance of terrestrial bryophytes in the Abies-dominated forests of the Sierra Chincua, part of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, attracts moss gatherers. Bryophyte mats are harvested as ornamentals, packed, and sold at the central auction of Mexico City. In 1996, we followed a group of about 10 family members in this activity and documented economic and ecological aspects. During the season they removed in total nearly 50 tons of fresh weight of bryophytes from the forest floor that was sold for approximately $3,500 USD, leaving behind a mosaic of gaps of bare soil in the mossy layer. The average gap size was 0.48 m² and extraction intensity varied between 0.5 and 4.1% of the total surface area (2.14% on average). In addition, over 11,000 Abies seedlings were unintentionally removed. We are conceive that the Mexican norm for bryophyte harvesting is not in line with current practices and we recommend the inclusion of guidelines for patch size, and that harvesters pay attention to accidental removal of tree seedlings.

A revisionary study of the genus Ptychomitrium showed that Ptychomitrium balansae Besch. and P. microblastum (C. Muell.) Par. are new synonyms of P. muelleri (Mitt.) Jaeg. The study markedly expands the geographical range of P. muelleri from Australia to New Caledonia, South America and South Africa. Ptychomitrium muelleri is an important species in the floral relationships between Australia, South America, and South Africa in the genus Ptychomitrium.

Newly designed algal-specific primers were used to amplify the ribosomal ITS region from 25 photobiont specimens from five lichenized fungi of the family Physciaceae (Lecanorales), Anaptychia ciliaris, Phaeophyscia orbicularis, Physcia caesia, P. tenella, and Physconia distorta. The obtained DNA sequences were then phylogenetically analyzed using parsimony jackknifing. The analyses indicated that the mycobionts associated with two photobiont species: Trebouxia impressa was found with all mycobionts, except Anaptychia ciliaris, which instead was associated with Trebouxia arboricola. In the jackknife tree, all Trebouxia arboricola sequences formed a monophyletic group with a high jackknife support. The Trebouxia impressa sequences also formed a well supported group, which in turn had some internal structure. The photobiont species is reported for the first time for Anaptychia ciliaris, Physcia caesia, and P. tenella. A phylogenetic tree for the photobiont, T. impressa, was compared to a phylogeny of the corresponding mycobionts, also based on ITS sequences. A combined analysis of the data from the photobiont and the data from the mycobiont was also performed. Several similarities were found in the tree topologies. The general similarity of the mycobiont and photobiont trees may indicate a coevolutionary history.

Th. Fries, the eldest son of the mycologist Elias Fries, developed an early interest in lichens. He had full insight in the earlier research of lichens, particularly in Scandinavia, but at the same time developed new generic concepts in accordance with the Italian-German school (Massalongo and his followers). In this he was heavily critized by Nylander. Th. Fries may also be regarded as the father of Arctic lichenology, and he participated in several expeditions to the region (Finnmark, Spitsbergen, Greenland). His thoroughness, critical sense, and sound taxonomic judgements in the traditional morpho-floristic way combined with newer approaches, that of ascomata (particularly spore) anatomy, renewed lichenology and laid the foundation for its modern development.

The majority of dioecious plants are not sexually dimorphic until the onset of reproductive maturation. The inability to identify sex in pre-reproductive plants limits sex-related studies in plant populations. Molecular techniques to identify sex in seed plants have had increasing success. However, sex-specific markers in bryophytes have not yet been found. Bryophytes can be effective model systems in understanding the reproductive biology of plant species with unisexual individuals, as well as the molecular biology of sex chromosomes and sex determination. This study was specifically designed to find sex-specific markers in Sphaerocarpos texanus. The study relied on the Polymerase Chain Reaction procedure to amplify arbitrary regions of genomic DNA to locate sex-specific markers. Bulk segregant analysis using 238 decamer primers, and involving a single full-sibling pedigree was used to identify sex-specific markers. Inheritance of specific markers by male or female individuals was tested in progeny derived from two mated pairs involving individuals in the pedigree. Consistency of the markers was tested with individuals outside the original pedigree in the same population as well as with individuals from a distant population. Four markers were found—three specific to females and one specific to males.

Microfungi were isolated from living and decomposing Sphagnum fuscum from a southern boreal bog in Alberta, Canada. Fifty-five fungi (three ascomycetes, three basidiomycetes, 11 zygomycetes, 28 Fungi Imperfecti, 10 unnamed mycelia sterilia) are described in this study. Of the Fungi Imperfecti, 21 species have known sexual states (teleomorph) in the Ascomycota, while the remaining seven species are known only from their asexual state (anamorph) and could not be assigned to specific teleomorphic families. Thirty-six species represent new records from Sphagnum and 45 species are new records for S. fuscum. Nearly 52% of the 45 identified fungi originated from three families, Mortierellaceae (10 taxa, Zygomycota), Trichocomaceae (8 taxa, Ascomycota), and Hypocreaceae (5 taxa, Ascomycota), with the remaining fungi representing 12 additional families. The 55 fungi have the ability to utilize a variety of carbon sources, such as cellulose, tannic acid, and pectin, and thus are important organisms involved the mineralization of carbon in peatlands.

New taxa, including Squamella spumosa, gen. nov. et sp. nov. S. Hammer, and seven new species in the genus Cladonia, C. acervata S. Hammer, C. attacta S. Hammer, C. complanata S. Hammer, C. cucullata S. Hammer, C. glebosa S. Hammer, C. imbricata S. Hammer, and C. nudicaulis S. Hammer, are described. New records for the lichen family Cladoniaceae in Australia are introduced or confirmed.

Substrate preferences of 87 taxa in Calymperes, Mitthyridium, and Syrrhopodon (Calymperaceae), as determined from label data on herbarium specimens, vary at the generic level as well as among the specific and subspecific taxa. The bark of trees and lianas is the most preferred substrate. Mitthyridium is most constant to the bark substrate, followed by Calymperes and then Syrrhopodon. Nineteen taxa of Syrrhopodon (38% of the 50 taxa studied), 14 taxa of Calymperes (50% of the 28 taxa studied), and six taxa of Mitthyridium (67% of the nine taxa studied), were 50 percent or more constant to bark; this trend reflects the presumed direction of evolutionary specialization of the genera. Preference for other substrates varies according to genus: rock is the second most common substrate for Calymperes, and dead wood is second for Mitthyridium and Syrrhopodon. The tree base habitat is also of importance for the three genera. Soil as a substrate is of least importance for Mitthyridium (a sample of one taxon collected on soil), intermediate for Calymperes (samples of 10 taxa: 36% of the 28 taxa), and of greater importance for Syrrhopodon (samples of 30 taxa: 60% of the 50 taxa).

The objective was to determine the major photosynthetic pigments in dry specimens of extant lichens as well as in Late Holocene subfossils that had been buried beneath ice in North Greenland. Dry specimens collected live contained up to 15 pigments, while subfossils of Umbilicaria cylindrica, U. krascheninnikovii, and U. hyperborea subfossils contained fewer, including chlorophyll a, in some cases chlorophyll b, and up to seven carotenoids. Concentrations were lower in subfossils, but pigments were shown to survive glaciation for up to 1,350 yr plus dry storage under herbarium conditions for up to 4 yr. High performance liquid chromatography revealed a preponderance of rapidly-eluted peaks in subfossils that were relatively inconspicuous in extracts of extant material, and these may have represented degradation products. Specimens of U. hyperborea were older than those of other species and yielded the lowest chlorophyll a/b ratios as well as the lowest F_v/F_m's values, reflecting limited shelf life of pigments. In all species chlorophyll a/chlorophyll b ratios and F_v/F_m readings were lower in subfossils than in comparable extant lichens. There was no evidence of major changes in pigments during the last millenium.

The lecideoid lichen Helocarpon lesdainii (Zahlbr.) Breuss, comb. nova is reported new to the United States from coastal forests of Oregon. Originally described as Lecidea lesdainii Zahlbr. from the Canary Islands, the species seems to be locally abundant in the Pacific Northwest.

This paper reports nine new moss records for Mexico from the Lacandona Forest: Calymperes rubiginosum, Fissidens guianensis var. guianensis, Mniomalia viridis, Orthostichella hexasticha, Orthostichopsis praetermisa, Phyllodrepanium falcifolium, Syrrhopodon flexifolius, Syrrhopodon africanus subsp. graminicola, and Syrrhopodon hornschuchii. Findings reported here demonstrate that there is still incomplete knowledge of the moss diversity in the Lacandona tropical rain forest region. Future research in tropical forests of southeastern Mexico and Central America will help to corroborate the continuity of distributional patterns from South America to North America through the Central American bridge.

The liverwort Spruceanthus theobromae (Spruce) Gradst., known from a single extant site and considered a critically endangered species, was detected on trunk bases of Theobroma cacao in 12 cacao plantations with low management intensity in western Ecuador. Its host specificity and exclusive occurrence in plantations are unique ecological features of the species. According to the IUCN criteria, Spruceanthus theobromae qualifies as a near threatened species (LR/nt) and should be removed from the World Red List of Bryophytes. The continued existence of cacao plantations with low management intensity in western Ecuador is of great importance to the conservation of local bryophyte diversity and is crucial to the survival of Spruceanthus theobromae.