Refine
Document Type
- Article (6)
Language
- English (6)
Has Fulltext
- yes (6)
Is part of the Bibliography
- no (6)
This very distinctive and easily recognized moss has terete foliation when dry, and has leaves spreading when moist. The leaves are ovate, abruptly broad-acuminate, about 1.5-2 mm long, and strongly plicate. The single costa extends to the base of the acumen, and the laminal cells are 1-2(-3):1 and low unipapillose.
A number of collections from Africa identified as Phyllodon scutellifolius or Glossadelphus serpyllifolius belong to Bryocrumia vivicolor, previously known only from America and Asia. Phyllodon scutellifolius is known only from one (possibly two) collections from Madagascar, and Glossadelphus serpyllifolius is a synonym of Bryocrumia vivicolor.
In the genus Rhizomnium T. Kop. most taxa have a strong leaf border several cells broad and bi- to tristratose. Rhizomnium striatulum (Mitt.) T. Kop. belongs to that group. In Northeast China one population of R. striatulum was found with a very weak leaf border, and also the costa of these plants is weaker than is characteristic for the species. The deviating population is figured and its significance discussed. The distribution of R. striatulum is mapped.
The distinctions between dispersal and vicariance are discussed and shown how they relate to geological history. Postulated theories on the tectonic origins and history of the Greater Antilles are reviewed, as well as possible climatic events that would affect biogeography. Numerous zoological examples are presented to argue both dispersalist and vicariance viewpoints. It is proposed that the modern moss flora of the Greater Antilles is best explained primarily by dispersal events. Post-vicariant events, such as Pleistocene climate changes, would have extirpated the vast majority of mosses from the islands and even among those taxa that survived, disperal by the same taxa would have obscured their origins. It is assumed that many of the North American elements in the high elevations of Hispaniola are a result of invasions during the Pleistocene. The Andean elements are considered relatively recent dispersally derived taxa that have successfully colonized the Antilles because of ecologically compatible habitats.
Plagiothecium lucidum (Hook. f. & Wils.) Paris is confirmed as a new addition to the bryoflora of tropical Africa on the basis of two collections from the Bale Mountains in Ethiopia. The type material of Isopterygium integrifolium Bartr. from Costa Rica in Central America is evaluated and this species is considered to be conspecific with P. lucidum. As a result of this taxonomic conclusion the range of this species is extended to Costa Rica and this is the first recognition of this species in the Central American isthmus. A world distribution map for this species is presented and some details of African plants and the type of I. integrifolium are illustrated.