New Data on Orthotrichum gigantosporum Lewinsky (Orthotrichaceae, Bryophyta), a Widespread Northern Andean-Patagonian Endemic Moss

The moss family Orthotrichaceae is still poorly known in the southern extreme of South America. This is especially true regarding the morphological variability, geographical distribution, and ecological affinities of the species restricted to the Andean-Patagonian area. These deficiencies are addressed for Orthotrichum gigantosporum Lewinsky, one of the least known and most interesting endemics of the area. After examining the rich collections made by our team in southern Chile and Argentina, we have found numerous new localities for the species. Orthotrichum gigantosporum has proven to be a widespread moss in the forests and scrublands of the northern sector of the Andean-Patagonian area. In the light of new morphological data, an updated description of the species is presented and the characteristics that allow its differentiation are discussed and illustrated. The ecological data obtained on the populations also help to characterise the distribution of this moss in relation to various environmental factors. An updated list of the accepted species of Orthotrichaceae present in the Andean-Patagonian area is also provided, facilitating an estimate of endemicity rates within each genu

Earliest herbarium evidence for the occurrence of Lewinskya acuminata (Orthotrichaceae) in East Africa

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Journal of Bryology on 23th September 2019, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/03736687.2019.1655871This research was supported by the Spanish Ministries of Science and Innovation (CGL2011-28857/BOS) and Economy and Competitiveness (CGL2016-80772-P

An NGS-based phylogeny of Orthotricheae (Orthotrichaceae, Bryophyta) with the proposal of the new genus Rehubryum from Zealandia

Phylogenomic data increase the possibilities of resolving the evolutionary and systematic relationships among taxa. This is especially valuable in groups with few and homoplasious morphological characters, in which systematic and taxonomical delimitations have been traditionally difficult. Such is the case of several lineages within Bryophyta, like Orthotrichaceae, the second most diverse family of mosses. Members of tribe Orthotricheae are common in temperate and cold regions, as well as in high tropical mountains. In extratropical areas, they represent one of the main components of epiphytic communities, both in dry and oceanic or hyperoceanic conditions. The epiphytic environment is considered a hostile one for plant development, mainly due to its low capacity of moisture retention. Thus, the diversification of the Orthotrichaceae in this environment could be seen as striking. Over the last two decades, great taxonomic and systematic progresses have led to a rearrangement at the generic level in this tribe, providing a new framework to link environment to patterns of diversification. Here, we use nuclear loci targeted with the GoFlag 408 enrichment probe set to generate a well-sampled phylogeny with well-supported suprageneric taxa and increasing the phylogenetic resolution within the two recognized subtribes. Specifically, we show that several genera with Ulota-like morphology jointly constitute an independent lineage. Within this lineage, the recently described Atlantichella from Macaronesia and Western Europe appears as the sister group of Ulota bellii from Zealandia. This latter species is here segregated in the new genus Rehubryum. Assessment of the ecological and biogeographical affinities of the species within the phylogenetic framework suggests that niche adaptation (including climate and substrate) may be a key evolutionary driver that shaped the high diversification of Orthotrichea

Seeking the identity of an enigmatic moss by embracing phylogenomics

Currently, a wide range of genomic techniques is available at a relatively affordable price. However, not all of them have been equally explored in bryophyte systematics. In the present study, we apply next‐generation sequencing to identify samples that cannot be assigned to a taxon by morphological analysis or by Sanger sequencing methods. These samples correspond to a moss with an enigmatic morphology that has been found throughout Western Europe over the last two decades. They exhibit several anomalies in the gametophyte and, on the rare occasions that they appear, also in the sporophyte. The most significant alterations are related to the shape of the leaves. Morphologically, all specimens correspond to mosses of the genus Lewinskya, and the least modified samples are potentially attributable to the Lewinskya affinis complex. Specimen identifications were first attempted using up to seven molecular markers with no satisfactory results. Thus, we employed data generated from targeted enrichment using the GoFlag 408 flagellate land plant probe set to elucidate their identity. Our results demonstrate that all the enigmatic samples correspond to a single species, L. affinis s.str. This approach provided the necessary resolution to confidently identify these challenging samples and may be a powerful tool for similar cases, especially in bryophytesThis work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness and the Spanish Research Agency of the Ministry of Science and Innovation (grant numbers CGL2016‐80772‐P, PID2020‐115149GB‐C21, and PID2020‐115149GB‐C22); by the European Union, Next Generation EU; and by the National Science Foundation of USA (DEB‐1541506

Comprehensive phylogenomic time tree of bryophytes reveals deep relationships and uncovers gene incongruences in the last 500 million years of diversification

Premise: Bryophytes form a major component of terrestrial plant biomass, structuring ecological communities in all biomes. Our understanding of the evolutionary history of hornworts, liverworts, and mosses has been significantly reshaped by inferences from molecular data, which have highlighted extensive homoplasy in various traits and repeated bursts of diversification. However, the timing of key events in the phylogeny, patterns, and processes of diversification across bryophytes remain unclear. Methods: Using the GoFlag probe set, we sequenced 405 exons representing 228 nuclear genes for 531 species from 52 of the 54 orders of bryophytes. We inferred the species phylogeny from gene tree analyses using concatenated and coalescence approaches, assessed gene conflict, and estimated the timing of divergences based on 29 fossil calibrations. Results: The phylogeny resolves many relationships across the bryophytes, enabling us to resurrect five liverwort orders and recognize three more and propose 10 new orders of mosses. Most orders originated in the Jurassic and diversified in the Cretaceous or later. The phylogenomic data also highlight topological conflict in parts of the tree, suggesting complex processes of diversification that cannot be adequately captured in a single gene-tree topology. Conclusions: We sampled hundreds of loci across a broad phylogenetic spectrum spanning at least 450 Ma of evolution; these data resolved many of the critical nodes of the diversification of bryophytes. The data also highlight the need to explore the mechanisms underlying the phylogenetic ambiguity at specific nodes. The phylogenomic data provide an expandable framework toward reconstructing a comprehensive phylogeny of this important group of plantsFunding was provided by the NSF collaborative project “Building a Comprehensive Evolutionary History of Flagellate Plants” (DEB #1541506 to J.G. Burleigh, E.C. Davis, S.F. McDaniel, and E.B. Sessa, and #1541545 to M von Konrat). B.G. acknowledges DEB‐1753811. J.C.V.A. acknowledges the Canada Research Chair (950‐232698); the CRNSG‐RGPIN 05967–2016 and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (projects 36781, 39135). The authors thank the two anonymous reviewers and the Associate Editor for their constructive comments on previous versions of the manuscrip

Estudio biogeográfico de los briófitos epífitos de Marruecos

Tesis doctoral inédita de la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología. Fecha de lectura: 13-04-200

Investigación en biodiversidad y cambio global: el cibc como referencia en la UAM

El Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Cambio Global (CIBC-UAM) es un centro propio de la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid que reúne a cerca de una centena de investigadores de los Departamentos de Biología y Ecología; y que persigue alcanzar los mayores niveles de excelencia en la generación y trasmisión de conocimientos sobre el tema. El centro nació con una perspectiva amplia de Cambio Global, desde el convencimiento de que los problemas ambientales de la actualidad van más allá del cambio climático y requieren perspectivas multidisciplinares para su resolución. En consecuencia, los investigadores del centro estudian diferentes facetas del mismo desde enfoques complementarios y siempre atentos a una activa transmisión de la información generada a la sociedad, con el objetivo último de colaborar en la puesta en marcha de soluciones efectivas a la crisis ambienta