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Stephensoniella brevipedunculata Kash., monotypic Indian liverwort, belonging to Division Marchantiophyta, Class Marchantiopsida, Order Marchantiales and Family Exormothecaceae was initially instituted by Kashyap in 1914, when he collected it for the first time from Mussorrie and later on collected it from other parts of Western Himalayas, such as Kulu and Dulchi pass at an altitude of 2,000 to 2,400m (Kashyap, 1929). Later collections were made from different parts of Western Himalaya by various bryologists like Kanwal (1977), Srivastava (1983), Pant (1983), Pant and Tiwari (1995).Udar et al. (1983) in an attempt to assess reasons for disappearance of this prestigious hepatic undertook studies on its detailed reproductive biology. However, Pant (1983) attributed fast increasing urbanization as the main cause for the disappearance of this liverwort from Nainital area of Western Himalayas. This liverwort was considered to be endemic to Western Himalayas only (IUCN, 2000). Tan et al. 1994a, while compiling first ever red list of bryophytes included 50 species (24 mosses, 25 liverworts and 1 hornwort). Subsequently, the list included another 41 taxa, including S. brevipedunculata, thus increasing the number of most endangered bryophyte species worldwide to 91 (Geissler et al. 1997).
District Rajouri harbours a rich floral and faunal diversity besides varying climatic zones namely sub-tropical, temperate and alpine. The region exhibit significant altitudinal variations ranging from 490 m. to 4700 m. The present study was conducted to report bryophytic elements of the study area as there is no previous work done on this aspect from the study area, except some stray references. A total of 44 bryophyte species belonging to 4 orders, 16 families and 21 genera were reported from the study area. A checklist of the reported plant species with family, distributional range and habitat is presented in the paper. Besides contributing to the regional and national biodiversity check list database, the present study has opened up a new window for the future studies on the various aspects of the reported taxa including extensive exploration for the updation of the present list and to study the conservational aspects of the disappearing bryoflora of the region.