Introduction to Bryophytes

by Alain Vanderpoorten , Bernard Goffinet

• ISBN13: 9780521877121
• ISBN10: 0521877121
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-06-22
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

Bryophytes were a pivotal step in land plant evolution, and their significance in the regulation of ecosystems and the conservation of biodiversity is becoming increasingly acknowledged. This introductory textbook assumes no prior knowledge of bryophyte biology, making it ideal for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, as well as amateur botanists. The authors expertly summarise the diversity of bryophytes and outline recent advances in our understanding of their evolutionary history, their ecological roles and preferences, their distribution patterns and conservation needs. The text is highly illustrated throughout, with boxed summaries of topics of current relevance in bryophyte biology, and a glossary of technical terms.

Author Biography

Alain Vanderpoorten is a Research Associate of the Belgian Funds for Scientific Research at the University of Lige, Belgium, where he teaches molecular systematics, biogeography and landscape ecology. His research presently focuses on the evolution of endemism. Bernard Goffinet is an Associate Professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Connecticut. His current research spans chloroplast genome evolution in liverworts, the phylogenetic history of mosses and the systematics of lichen-forming fungi. He teaches bryophyte and lichen biology and, green plant evolution.

Table of Contents

Preface page	p. vii
Evolutionary significance of bryophytes	p. 1
What do we call a bryophyte?	p. 2
Bryophytes are embryophytes	p. 8
Bryophytes and land plant evolution	p. 9
Bryophytes and the conquest of land	p. 15
Ecological significance of bryophytes	p. 26
Water and biogeochemical cycles	p. 26
Vegetation succession and soil formation	p. 34
Bryophytes as food and as shelter	p. 40
Liverworts	p. 43
Structure and development	p. 43
Classification and macroevolution	p. 62
Biogeography and ecology	p. 65
Mosses	p. 70
Structure and development	p. 70
Classification and macroevolution	p. 101
Biogeography and ecology	p. 104
Hornworts	p. 106
Structure and development	p. 106
Classification and macroevolution	p. 120
Biogeography and ecology	p. 121
Biogeography	p. 124
Bryophyte diversity and distribution patterns	p. 127
Origin and evolution of bryophyte distribution patterns	p. 130
Evolutionary significance of bryophyte distribution patterns	p. 141
Ecology	p. 153
Global ecology	p. 153
Landscape ecology	p. 156
Population ecology	p. 162
Physiological ecology	p. 185
Water relations	p. 185
Light	p. 195
Mineral nutrition	p. 202
Temperature	p. 206
Bryophytes in a changing world	p. 214
Impact of pollution on bryophytes	p. 214
Application to bioindication	p. 224
Adaptation to a changing environment	p. 229
Conservation biology	p. 232
Levels of threats and the need for conservation	p. 233
Why are bryophytes threatened?	p. 237
Conservation strategies	p. 244
Restoration ecology	p. 248
Glossary	p. 256
References	p. 267
Index	p. 294
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