Selected aspects of Lycopodium annotinum L. sporulation

The conducted study aimed to show the differences in the process of sporulation at two populations of Lycopodium annotinum L. occurring within the governmental forests in the habitats: undisturbed and disturbed by economic treatments. The study was conducted in 2008-2011 in the southern part of the Krakowsko-Częstochowska Upland. It concerned the number of observations of sporophylls occurring during the year. There was also examined till which months within the year spores are released. The study also included observations of the lot of sporophylls which released the spores. Studies have shown that in the undisturbed habitat during the year there occurred 6 times more sporophylls than in the disturbed habitat. It was also observed that the period of their appearance in the undisturbed habitat was prolonged compared to literature data, and lasted until November 2008. Such a late appearance of sporophylls was not in the disturbed habitat, where the appearance of sporophylls was observed only until July 2008. However, only in the disturbed habitat there was observed occurrence of sporophylls in March 2009. In the undisturbed habitat spore release process lasted until October 2008, while in the disturbed one until September. In this habitat there was also observed that 28% of marked shoots with strobili died before the release of spores. This situation was not observed in the undisturbed habitat. The study also showed that in the both positions, after releasing the spores, all the shoots died within 3 years, however, in the disturbed habitat shoots died much faster than in the undisturbed one

Succession is threatening the large population of Lycopodiella inundata (L.) Holub. on anthropogenic site

Lycopodiella inundata is an endangered, wetland species, able to occur in secondary, anthropogenic habitats. The article presents five-year changes in the occurrence of Lycopodiella inundata on the one of the largest stands in Central Poland. Chosen parameters of population were examined in different stages of vegetation succession. In open thickets the number of fertile stems was near three times higher and amounted above eight hundred fertile stems per square meter. In contrast, in patches with dense herb- and shrub-layer, the low number of fertile stems of L. inundata, have been observed. At anthropogenic sites, where L. inundata occurs, active protection should be made for the inhibition of succession and for the rejuvenation of  habitat

Variability of stem morphology in Lycopodium clavatum (Lycopodiaceae) is not related to ploidy level

Background and aims – Based on pedicel length, three morphological forms of Lycopodium clavatum L. are recognized. It has been previously reported that these are correlated with the ploidy level. The present investigation compares for the first time in Poland the diversity in pedicel length with the corresponding nuclear DNA amount and the ploidy level of L. clavatum. We aimed to find correlation between the morphotypes and the ploidy level in the Polish population of L. clavatum.Methods – Samples of shoots were taken from two clumps of L. clavatum. The ploidy level and 2C DNA content analysis was combined with pedicel length measurements. The ploidy level and genome size estimation were performed using flow cytometry.Key results – We found the occurrence of two morphological types of generative stems. The morphotype A produced distinct long pedicels (10.8–43.3 mm). The morphotype B had visible, but very short pedicels (4.5–9.3 mm). We tested the already existing hypothesis, according to which the A and B morphotypes represent respectively diploid and triploid ploidy level. Surprisingly, we did not find such a correlation. Regardless of the morphotype, all the studied plants were diploid, with 5.04–5.13 pg/2C nuclear DNA content.Conclusions – The occurrence of stems of different morphology in L. clavatum was not linked to the ploidy level. It is not excluded that the morphotypes may be genetically determined, but in the studied material, the ploidy level is certainly not at the origin of their differentiation

Variability of stem morphology in Lycopodium clavatum (Lycopodiaceae) is not related to ploidy level

Background and aims – Based on pedicel length, three morphological forms of Lycopodium clavatum L. are recognized. It has been previously reported that these are correlated with the ploidy level. The present investigation compares for the first time in Poland the diversity in pedicel length with the corresponding nuclear DNA amount and the ploidy level of L. clavatum. We aimed to find correlation between the morphotypes and the ploidy level in the Polish population of L. clavatum.Methods – Samples of shoots were taken from two clumps of L. clavatum. The ploidy level and 2C DNA content analysis was combined with pedicel length measurements. The ploidy level and genome size estimation were performed using flow cytometry.Key results – We found the occurrence of two morphological types of generative stems. The morphotype A produced distinct long pedicels (10.8–43.3 mm). The morphotype B had visible, but very short pedicels (4.5–9.3 mm). We tested the already existing hypothesis, according to which the A and B morphotypes represent respectively diploid and triploid ploidy level. Surprisingly, we did not find such a correlation. Regardless of the morphotype, all the studied plants were diploid, with 5.04–5.13 pg/2C nuclear DNA content.Conclusions – The occurrence of stems of different morphology in L. clavatum was not linked to the ploidy level. It is not excluded that the morphotypes may be genetically determined, but in the studied material, the ploidy level is certainly not at the origin of their differentiation

The usefulness of aerobiological methods in monitoring lycopod sporulation

Background and aims – The purpose of the study was to determine whether the concentration of lycopod spores present in aeroplankton reflects their release during sporulation and whether it is a good indirect tool to estimate the condition of lycopod populations in Poland.Methods – The study was conducted in Sosnowiec, S Poland. The airborne spores were continuously captured by the volumetric spore trap during a period of eleven years (1998–2008). Plant pollen grains and spores from the trap were macroscopically identified, counted and expressed as daily pollen grain and spore concentrations in 1 m3 of air. Key results – The average monthly sum of captured lycopod spores varied in the analysed period of time from 0.3 to 4.1 spores per year. Their yearly concentration was small in comparison to the ascertained pollen grains and did not exceed 0.5% of all airborne particles captured in a given year. In addition, they showed seasonal fluctuations with the highest concentration of spores usually detected in July. This finding is in accordance with the typical time of lycopod sporulation. In addition, we detected the presence of lycopod spores outside the typical summer sporulation time, i.e. during months of winter and early spring. In our opinion, their presence is related to the phenomenon of lengthened (winter) sporulation of clubmosses.Conclusions – Our results showed only limited transportation of lycopod spores by wind. Therefore, the condition of lycopod populations in Poland can hardly be estimated using aerobiological methods. Nevertheless, the seasonal dynamics of lycopod spore concentration can be recorded by aerobiological methods

The diversity of endophytic fungi in the above-ground tissue of two Lycopodium species in Poland

Endophytes are a large and diverse group of fungi that colonize healthy plant tissues without causing any symptoms. The majority of studies have focused on angiosperm and conifer hosts and few have examined the endophytes of lycophytes. In the present study, we characterized culturable endophytic fungi in two closely related Lycopodium species (L. annotinum and L. clavatum) from pine, beech, oak and spruce forests across Poland. More than 400 strains were isolated but only 18 Ascomycete species were identified. Members of the Dothideomycetes dominated the fungal endophyte communities in Lycopodium. The most abundant taxa cultured were Phoma brasiliensis (from L. clavatum) and Paraconiothyrium lycopodinum (from L. annotinum). Five taxa were isolated exclusively from L. annotinum, but only two of them (Paraconiothyrium lycopodinum and Mycosphaerella sp.) were relatively abundant. Two taxa were only found in L. clavatum, namely: Stagonospora pseudovitensis and an unidentified Dothideomycete. The taxon assigned as Ascomycota 2 (SH219457.06FU) was isolated only from strobili of both host species. Direct PCR and cloning from L. annotinum shoots revealed a substantially greater endophyte richness compared with the results from culturing. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13199-014-0291-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users