A brief survey of bryological studies in the Subantarctic, including Macrocoma tenue (Orthotrichaceae), a moss genus and species newly found in Îles Kerguelen

Studies on the bryophyte flora of the Southern Ocean islands and in the Antarctic are briefly reviewed and the current state of knowledge of the moss flora of Îles Kerguelen is discussed. Macrocoma tenue (Hook. & Grev.) Vitt is recorded from the Îles Kerguelen archipelago and this constitutes th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae
Main Authors: Halina Bednarek-Ochyra, Vítězslav Plášek, Shui-Liang Guo
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Polish Botanical Society 2018
Subjects:
Antarctica
austral polar regions
biodiversity
biogeography
Bryophyta
Kerguelen Biogeographical Province
Southern Ocean
Botany
QK1-989
Antarctic
The Antarctic
Austral
Kerguelen
Îles Kerguelen
Antarc*
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.3597
https://doaj.org/article/32c1524734c346d787a92ffaa97968a8
Description
Summary:Studies on the bryophyte flora of the Southern Ocean islands and in the Antarctic are briefly reviewed and the current state of knowledge of the moss flora of Îles Kerguelen is discussed. Macrocoma tenue (Hook. & Grev.) Vitt is recorded from the Îles Kerguelen archipelago and this constitutes the first record of the genus Macrocoma (Müll. Hal.) Grout from the Subantarctic. The local plants of the species are characterized and illustrated and their ecology is discussed. Global distribution of M. tenue is reviewed and mapped. It is suggested that the type subspecies of M. tenue is a Gondwanan relictual taxon, which could have evolved on this supercontinent prior to its break-up and, subsequently, it reached Îles Kerguelen where it survived during the Pleistocene glacial epoch.

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