Distribution of bryophytes in China

China is located in eastern Asia, between 18°-55°N and 74°-138°E. The total land area of about 9,600,000 km is divided into 30 administrative areas. The climate varies from subtropic in the south to temperate in the north. The topography is complex. All of the conditions mentioned above cause the bryoflora to be complex. There are estimated to be about 2,000 species of Musci and 1,000 species of Anthocerotae and Hepaticae. The late Professor P.C. Chen considered that China could be divided into seven distributional areas, this view is supported by most Chinese bryologists today

A bryophyte checklist of the ecological reserve of Gurjaú, Pernambuco, Brazil

A bryophyte checklist of the Ecological Reserve of Gurjaú (08º10’00'’-08º15’00"S; 35º02’30"- 35º05’00"W), a remnant of the Atlantic Forest in the State of Pernambuco, has been compiled. The Reserve covers an area of approximately 1362 ha, including several forest fragments of diverse sizes and stages of conservation. Specimens collected during the years 2000 and 2001, and voucher specimens from the UFP Herbarium at the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE) were analyzed. Bryophytes were collected on live and dead trunks, rocks, leaves and soil. The studied bryoflora is composed of 53 species of liverworts, 37 species of mosses and one hornwort. Among the twenty-three registered families, Lejeuneaceae (41 spp.) was the most representative one with the highest generic and specific richness, which confirms its status as predominant in tropical rain forests. Fissidens (7 spp.), Lejeunea and Cheilolejeunea (6 spp.), and Calymperes (4 spp.) were the most representative genera. The studied bryoflora is predominantly composed of species of neotropical distribution, widely spread throughout Brazil. The presence of an endemic species of the Atlantic Forest, Vitalianthus bichlerianus (Pôrto & Grolle) Schust. & Giancotti, and some other exclusively Brazilian species, e.g., Riccardia regnellii (Ängstr.) Hell have been recorded from the site

Bryophyte floras of tropical Pacific islands

A review of the status of bryological research in each of the nations, states or governmental units of southern Melanesia, Micronesia and tropical Polynesia shows the imperfect state of knowledge about the Pacific tropical islands. Best known overall are Hawaii and Micronesia with Wallis and Futuna, the Marquesas and the high mountains of Fiji seeming to be the least known potentially species rich areas. Involvement of residents from Pacific islands in botanical study and preservation of ecosystems should be encouraged by tropical bryologists

Bryophytes from some Caatinga areas in the state of Bahia (Brazil)

The caatinga is a deciduous and xerophilous vegetation that covers large areas in Brazil. An irregular rainfall with a marked dry period is a characteristic feature. This paper represents the first contribution to the knowledge of the bryoflora from caatinga vegetation in the State of Bahia. The survey was carried out in several areas from Bahia in which eigthteen species of bryophytes were found (15 mosses and 3 liverworts). The bryoflora from caatinga is composed mainly of generalists and xerophilous taxa, but even some hygrophilous species can be found. A number of species including Hyophiladelphus agrarius, Hyophila involuta, Calymperes palisotii ssp. richardii, Bryum argenteum, Entodontopsis leucostega, Octoblepharum albidum, Frullania ericoides also occur in other vegetation types. However, there are a number of species restricted to this type of vegetation, such as Helicophyllum torquatum and Riccia vitalii, at least in Bahia. Most moss species were acrocarpous with erect and short (short-turf) growth-form, whereas the foliose hepaticae were of incubous, and thallose forms

Contribution to the bryoflora of Kenya

109 species of bryophytes are presented from various localities in Kenya, among which are thirteen new records (marked with **) for the country

Bryophytes from the Republic of Equatorial Guinea (West Central Africa) : 4., notes on some nomina nuda from Annobon

Eight moss species corresponding to nomina nuda recorded in the literature from Annobon Island are listed with their recent determination and current names. Leucophanes unguiculatum, Philonotis uncinata var. glaucescens and Vesicularia strephomischos are new records for the Equatorial Guinean bryoflora.Se citan con su identificación correcta y sus nombres actuales ocho especies de musgos procedentes de la isla de Annobón y registrados en la bibliografía como nomina nuda. Leucophanes unguiculatum, Philonotis uncinata var. glaucescens y Vesicularia strephomischos son nuevos registros para la brioflora de la República de Guinea Ecuatorial

Floristic survey of epixylic Bryophytes of an area remnant of the Atlantic forest (Timbaúba - PE, Brazil) : 1., Hepaticopsida (except Lejeuneaceae) and Bryopsida

A survey of the epixylic bryoflora of a remaining Atlantic forest (seasonal coastal deciduous forest), Engenho Água Azul, in the municipality of Timbaúba ( Lat 7° 35S; Long. 35° 20W ), State of Pernambuco, Brazil, registered 35 species of bryophytes distributed in 11 families of Bryopsida: Calymperaceae, Pilotrichaceae, Fissidentaceae, Hookeriaceae, Hypnaceae, Leucobryaceae, Leucomiaceae, Orthotrichaceae, Plagiotheciaceae, Sematophyllaceae, Thuidiaceae, and 5 of Hepaticopsida: Aneuraceae, Frullaniaceae, Geocalycaceae, Plagiochilaceae and Radulaceae. New records northeastern of Brazil are: Frullania caroliniana Sullivant, F. gymnotis Nees & Mont., Ochrobryum stenophyllum Besch., Plagiochila trigonifolia Steph., Radula macrostachya Linbenb. & Gott., Riccardia digitiloba (Spruce ex Steph.) Hell, Thuidium tomentosum Schimp. ex Besch. and Trichosteleum pusillum (Hornsch.) Jaeg. There is an indication of the description, illustration, and geographic distribution for Brazil of all taxons found.En este trabajo se presenta el catálogo de la flora briofítica epífita de la selva tropical oceánica Engenho Agua Azul, situada en el municipio de Timbaúba (Lat. 7º 35S; Long. 35º 20O), perteneciente al estado de Pernambuco, Brasil. Se registraron 35 especies de briófitos distribuidas en 11 familias de la clase Bryopsida: Calymperaceae, Pilotrichaceae, Fissidentaceae, Hookeriaceae, Hypnaceae, Leucobryaceae, Leucomiaceae, Orthotrichaceae, Plagiotheciaceae, Sematophyllaceae, Thuidiaceae y 5 de la clase Hepaticopsida: Aneuracee, Frullaniaceae, Geocalycaceae, Plagiochilaceae y Radulaceae. Se aportan nuevas citas para la región nordeste del Brasil - Frullania caroliniana Sullivant, F. gymnotis Nees & Mont., Ochrobryum stenophyllumBesch., Plagiochila trigonifoliaSteph., Radula macrostachya Linbenb. & Gott., Riccardia digitiloba(Spruce ex Steph.) Hell, Thuidium tomentosum Schimp. ex Besch. yTrichosteleum pusillum (Horsnch.) Jaeg. Se presenta una descripción y una ilustración de cada taxon y se comenta su distribución geográfica

Systematic screening of bryophytes for antitumor agents

References are made to cytotoxic and/or antitumor compounds that have been isolated - ansamitocin P-3 from Claopodium crispifolium (Hook.) Ren. & Card. and Anomodon attenuatus Hueb., or an associated actinomycete, and ohioensins and pallidisetums from Polytrichum spp. Several hundred collections, which have been obtained from temperate regions of North America during 1990 and 1991, are currently being screened in new bioassays; active sesquiterpene lactones have been recently isolated from species of Porella. The methodologies of collecting and screening bryophyte samples are discussed with consideration to costs based on expected number of samples that might be collected in a day, the diversity in the collections as related to phytogeography and vegetation types, and the bryophyte cover that is vanishing in many forest regions of the United States. The difficulties in obtaining large collections for isolation of active agents are also discussed by examplerecollection of Claopodium crispifolium

The exploration of the East African bryoflora

During the past 5 years intensive bryological explorations were carried out in Tanzania with special emphasize on hitherto undercollected areas (e.g. Nguru mountains, Mafia Island, unknown accesses of Mount Kilimanjaro and Meru) and on special habitats (e.g. rocky semi-desert or heath vegetation and alkaline tolerant epiphytic vegetation along the Rift Valley). These collections (above 8000 numbers) resulted in numerous records, some of them new to the African continent and at least 8 species new to science. The data point to interesting phytogeographical links and help to explain the evolution of the flora of East African volcanoes and crystalline mountains. Hitherto unknown oil bodies of more than 50 liverwort species were investigated. This paper does not give a full account of these studies but only provides examples to illustrate the above points