Bryophyte Ecology and Climate Change

by Edited by Zoltán Tuba , Nancy G. Slack , Lloyd R. Stark

• ISBN13: 9780521767637
• ISBN10: 0521767636
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-02-14
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

Bryophytes, especially mosses, represent a largely untapped resource for monitoring and indicating effects of climate change on the living environment. They are tied very closely to the external environment and have been likened to 'canaries in the coal mine'. Bryophyte Ecology and Climate Change is the first book to bring together a diverse array of research in bryophyte ecology, including physiology, desiccation tolerance, photosynthesis, temperature and UV responses, under the umbrella of climate change. It covers a great variety of ecosystems in which bryophytes are important, including aquatic, desert, tropical, boreal, alpine, Antarctic, and Sphagnum-dominated wetlands, and considers the effects of climate change on the distribution of common and rare species as well as the computer modeling of future changes. This book should be of particular value to individuals, libraries, and research institutions interested in global climate change.

Table of Contents

List of contributors	p. xi
Preface	p. xvii
Introductory Chapters
The Ecological Value of Bryophytes as Indicators of Climate Change	p. 3
Bryophyte Physiological Processes in a Changing Climate: an Overview	p. 13
Ecophysiology
Climatic Responses and Limits of Bryophytes: Comparisons and Contrasts with Vascular Plants	p. 35
Effects of Elevated Air CO2 Concentration on Bryophytes: a Review	p. 55
Seasonal and Interannual Variability of Light and UV Acclimation in Mosses	p. 71
Aquatic Bryophytes
Ecological and Physiological Effects of Changing Climate on Aquatic Bryophytes	p. 93
Aquatic Bryophytes under Ultraviolet Radiation	p. 115
Desert and Tropical Ecosystems
Responses of a Biological Crust Moss to Increased Monsoon Precipitation and Nitrogen Deposition in the Mojave Desert	p. 149
Ecology of Bryophytes in Mojave Desert Biological Soil Crusts: Effects of Elevated Co2 on Sex Expression, Stress Tolerance, and Productivity in the Moss Syntrichia caninervis Mitt.	p. 169
Responses of Epiphytic Bryophyte Communities to Simulated Climate Change in the Tropics	p. 191
Alpine, Arctic, and Antarctic Ecosystems
Effects of Climate Change on Tundra Bryophytes	p. 211
Alpine Bryophytes as Indicators for Climate Change: a Case Study from the Austrian Alps	p. 237
Bryophytes and Lichens in a Changing Climate: An Antarctic Perspective	p. 251
Sphagnum and Peatlands
Living on the Edge: The Effects of Drought on Canada's Western Boreal Peatlands	p. 277
The Structure and Functional Features of Sphagnum Cover of the Northern West Siberian Mires in Connection with Forecasting Global Environmental and Climatic Changes	p. 299
The Southernmost Sphagnum-dominate Mires on the Plains of Europe: Formation, Secondary Succession, Degradation, and Protection	p. 317
Changes in Bryophyte Distribution with Climate Change: Data and Models
The Role of Bryophyte Paleoecology in Quaternary Climate Reconstructions	p. 335
Signs of Climate Change in the Bryoflora of Hungary	p. 359
Can the Effects of Climate Change on British Bryophytes be Distinguished from those Resulting from Other Environmental Changes?	p. 371
Climate Change and Protected Areas: How well do British Rare Bryophytes Fare?	p. 409
Modeling the Distribution of Sematophyllum substrumulosum (Hampe) E. Britton as a Signal of Climatic Changes in Europe	p. 427
Modeling Bryophyte Productivity Across Gradients of Water Availability Using Canopy Form-Function Relationships	p. 441
Conclusions
Bryophytes as Predictors of Climate Change	p. 461
Conclusions and Future Research	p. 483
Index	p. 491
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