Responses and Adaptations of Bryophytes to a Changing World

Dear Colleagues,

Bryophytes can colonize a wide range of environments in all bioclimatic regions, mainly thanks to their ability to tolerate extended periods of dehydration by entering a state of cryptobiosis, from which they can recover their normal metabolism as soon as water becomes available again. The distribution of these plants depends both on general factors of climate, such as latitude and altitude, and on ecological factors (plant functional types). The role of bryophytes in the ecosystem, a largely overlooked field of study, may be significant despite their small size. The structure and function of a plant organism result from the interaction between genetics and its adaptation to the environment in which it lives. Bryophytes have characteristics that do not allow for a comparison of their biological strategies and growth patterns with those of other terrestrial organisms.

The effects of climate change on the environment are often disproportionate to the duration of the climate-change-induced phenomena. For this reason, the assessment of the impact of climate change on species, ecosystems and communities represents a significant challenge for basic research. In this respect,  this Special Issue aims to collect studies on the ecological breadth of bryophytes in response to the environment in which they grow.

Dr. Annalena Cogoni
Dr. Silvia Poponessi
Guest Editors

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• bryophytes
• climate change
• plant functional types
• bryophyte distribution
• conservation

Title: Investigation of the copper requirements of the metallophyte liverworts Cephaloziella massalongi and C. nicholsonii
Authors: Christina Campbell; David Holyoak; Daniel Kelly; Neil Lockhart; David Long; Noeleen Smyth
Affiliation: 1. Quinta da Cachopa, Cabeçudo, Portugal 2. Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland 3. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Dublin, Ireland 4. Research Associate Bryology, Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh, Scotland 5. Environmental Horticulture, University College Dublin, Ireland
Abstract: Former mine sites can provide habitat for many rare specialised bryophyte species that have adapted to metal-rich soil conditions which are toxic to most other plant species. Some of the bryophyte species found in this habitat are facultative metallophytes, and others are regarded as strict metallophytes, the so-called ‘copper mosses’. It is a general assumption in the literature that Cephaloziella massalongi and C. nicholsonii, both categorised as Endangered in the IUCN Red List for Europe, are also strict metallophytes and obligate copper bryophytes. This in vitro experiment investigated growth and gemmae production of these two species from different sites in Ireland and Great Britain on treatment plates of 0ppm, 3ppm, 6ppm, 12ppm, 24ppm, 48ppm and 96ppm copper. Results showed that C. massalongi and C. nicholsonii do not obligately require copper for their growth. The differences in response to the copper treatment levels among populations evident within both species could possibly be due to ecotypic variation. Implications for the species’ conservation are discussed.

Title: Bryophyte diversity and distribution patterns along elevation gradients of the Mount Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe
Authors: Marta Puglisi; Saverio Sciandrello
Affiliation: Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Catania, Via A. Longo 19, 95125 Catania, Italy
Abstract: The study of distribution patterns represents a useful method for deducing the influence of the climate and other variables in the local distribution of species. Bryophytes represent a valuable model for this type of survey because they have a high sensitivity to climatic conditions, wide distribution and are found from sea level to above the tree line. For this study we used all the available data (literature, herbarium), plus hundreds of original (Puglisi, 2010-2022), on the occurrence of bryophytes species on the Etna. Mt. Etna was divided into 33 belts 100 m wide, and the species richness of each altitudinal range was calculated as the total number of species per interval. Simple regression analyses are used to correlate life form, life strategy, chorotypes, total bryophyte flora, to log-area of each elevational. Regression analyses are performed using the statistical package Past Version 2.17.

Title: Seasonal hydration status of common bryophyte species in Azorean native vegetation
Authors: Márcia C.M. Coelho*, Rosalina Gabriel* & Claudine Ah-Peng
Affiliation: Universidade dos Açores, Dep. de Ciências Agrárias, Rua Capitão João d´Ávila, sn. Pico da Urze, Portugal
Abstract: Bryophytes play an important role in water-flow regulation through their unique water holding ability. Notwithstanding, almost no data exists on the quantification of the water inputs into the different ecosystems. This study aims to assess how Field Water Content (FWC) of 14 species varies along the year at different altitudes (40 m, 600 m and 900 m) in Terceira Island; how do climate variables (temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, vapour pressure deficit) affect FWC along four seasons; and what is the hydration level of the species, and how is Relative Water Content (RWC) related to the maximum holding water ability. Five samples (ca, 20 shoots/species) were monthly collected. Fresh, saturated and dry weight were obtained to get FWC and RWC. As expected, FWC increases along the elevation gradient, generally exhibiting higher values in wetter seasons, but patterns are not equal for all classes. RWC values show that the plants keep hydrated for the whole year, albeit never reaching their full capacity. Understanding how much native bryophytes, acquire, store, and release water into the system contributes to the knowledge of native vegetation resilience in the face of climate change and potential impacts on the availability and quality of the water resource — a major ecosystem service performed by bryophytes.

Title: Liverworts Communities of Riverbank, Wet Habitats, and Calcareous Tufa at the Marmore Falls (Umbria-Central Italy): First Characterization
Authors: 1Roberto Venanzoni & 2*Silvia Poponessi
Affiliation: 1Department of Chemistry, Biology and Biotechnology University of Perugia, Italy 2Department of Environmental and Life Science, Botany section, University of Cagliari, Italy
Abstract: Marmore Falls is the highest waterfalls in Italy made by ancient Romans about 200 years BC; it is formed by the Velino River which, in a single waterfall, pours into the narrow gorge of the Nera River with a drop of approximately 170 m. Calcareus rocks, riverbanks, wet habitats, and calcareous tufa, constitute a wonderful mosaic of habitats suitable for aquatic bryophyte communities, recognized as a priority habitat (marked *) under Annex I of the European Union Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) named “Petrified springs with tufa formation (Cratoneurion), 7220*”. Despite being a site of community importance, detailed studies are lacking. These habitats are fragile niches that preserve a unique bryological diversity but are threatened by ongoing climatic changes. For this reason, studies aimed at conservation are to be supported. In this first contribution the liverwort communities are described; these are bryophytic communities of extreme naturalistic value studied for the first time in Italy and which show important vicariances compared to the types described in central Europe, expanding knowledge on the distribution area. Infact, Bryo-sociological studies in Italy are still scarce and limited. The aim of the work is to show results on the characterization of all the tallose Liverworts communities found in springs, riverbanks and wet walls of streams, waterfalls, and ravines, on neutral-alkaline substrates and water. A Floristic, chorological, ecological and synthaxonomical chatacteristics is provided for the described associations of the following species: Apopellia endiviifolia (Dicks.) Nebel & D. Quandt; Conocephalum conicum (L.) Dumort.; Conocephalum salebrosum Szweyk., Buczk. & Odrzyk.; Pellia epiphylla (L.) Corda subsp. epiphylla; Marchantia quadrata Scop.; Marchantia polymorpha subsp. montivagans Bischl. & Boissel.-Dub.; Marchantia polymorpha subsp. ruderalis Bischl. & Boissel.-Dub. and Lunularia cruciata (L.) Dumort. ex Lindb. subsp. Cruciata. The characterisation of habitat 7220* should be emphasised. It is often limited to the presence of the Cratoneurion alliance only. The 170 phytosociological surveys were processed using multivariate statistical analysis, and the dendrogram obtained made it possible to highlight several groups of surveys attributed to at least 9 plant associations, 5 of which were new to Italy and Europe.

Title: Genetic diversity related to landscape diversity in a highly vag-ile organism: the case of the moss Funaria hygrometrica Hedw.
Author: Mahmoud Magdy; Olaf Werner; Jairo Patiño; Rosa María Ros
Author Affiliations: Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Biology, Murcia University, 30100 Murcia, Spain; Genetics Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, 11241 Cairo, Egypt. Island Ecology and Evolution Research Group Instituto de Productos Naturales y Agrobiología (IPNA-CSIC), 38206, Tenerife, Spain;
Abstract: Funaria hygrometrica, a highly vagile moss species known for its remarkable dispersal capacity, was selected as the focal organism to investigate the relationship between landscape diversity and genetic diversity. Our study encompassed samples collected from two distinct re-gions: the Spanish Sierra Nevada Mountains, characterized by a diverse landscape with an alti-tudinal difference of nearly 3500 meters within a short distance, and the Murcia Region in Southeast Spain, characterized by a uniform landscape akin to the lowlands of Sierra Nevada. Genotyping analysis targeted three genetic regions: the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (nrITS), the chloroplast rps3-rpl16 region, and the mitochondrial rpl5-rpl16 spacer. Through this analysis, we aimed to assess genetic variability and population structure across the sampled populations. Our findings revealed notable differences between the Sierra Nevada and Murcia populations. Specifically, the Sierra Nevada populations exhibited significantly higher levels of haplotype and nucleotide diversity compared to those from Murcia. Interestingly, fur-ther investigation unveiled that samples from the lowlands of Sierra Nevada showed a closer genetic affinity to Murcia than to the highlands of Sierra Nevada. This observed genetic differen-tiation appeared to be primarily driven by altitude or correlated environmental factors rather than geographical distance. Statistical analyses, including partial Mantel tests and ResistanceGA, provided robust evidence of a significant relationship between genetic diversity and landscape diversity, encompassing climatic and bioclimatic variables. Moreover, our study elucidated po-tential explanations for the observed genetic structuring within F. hygrometrica samples popula-tions. These included factors such as a high selfing-rate within restricted habitats, limited aver-age dispersal distance of spores, hybrid depression affecting partially incompatible genetic line-ages, and recent migration facilitated by human activities into formerly unoccupied areas of the dry zones of Southeast Spain.
Highlights: Sierra Nevada populations of Funaria hygrometrica showed higher diversity than Murcia. Lowland Sierra Nevada samples resembled Murcia, suggesting altitude influences genetic differentiation. Statistical analyses confirmed the link between genetic and landscape diversity, driven by altitude and environmental factors. Selfing rates, limited dispersal, hybrid depression, and human-induced migration may contribute to genetic structuring in Funaria hygrometrica.