Clearwater National Forest |
GREEN BUG-ON-A-STICK Buxbaumia viridis Moug. & Nestl. STATUS USFS Region 1: Sensitive USFWS: none ICDC: S2 INPS: State Priority 2 TAXONOMY Family: Buxbaumiaceae Common Name: green bug-on-a-stick Synonyms: Buxbaumia aphylla var. viridis Buxbaumia indusiata Description An inconspicuous moss with a seta 5-8 mm long, from a bulbous base. Capsule not glossy, greenish yellow becoming yellow-brown, 5-6 X 2.3-3 mm, flattened on the dorsal side, and rounded on the ventral; stomata immersed, composed of one cell; capsule wall of 3-4 layers of cells, the cuticle of the outer layer 15-3-um thick, spliting longitudinally to irregularly on the dorsal side, incurved when dry, and recurved or rolled back when wet; operculum 0.7-1.3 mm long; peristome of about 3 circles of teeth, strongly papillose, the inner teeth 0.5-0.6 mm long; the outer ones shorter; endostome papillose, 0.8-0.9 mm long. Spores 10-13 um, papillose. Reproduction is by spores. When the capsules are hit by raindrops, the spores are emitted in puffs (Lawnton 1971). Distinguishing Features and Similar Species The cuticle on the upper side of the inclined capsule, that splits longitudinally and peels back toward the edges is characteristic. It is found most often on very rotten logs. It differs from the other two Buxbaumias that occur in the area by the cuticle that splits lengthwise and curls back. B. aphylla and B. piperi both have cuticles that peel back from the mouth of the capsule (around the teeth). The capsule of B. aphylla is reddish-brown, whereas that of B. viridis is dull (Gray 1999). DISTRIBUTION Range Green bug-on-a-stick is found interruptedly circumboreal from Europe, China, and western North America including British Columbia, Alberta, Idaho, Montana, Colorado, Washington, and Oregon. On the Clearwater National Forest it occurs in the Eldorado and Yakus Creek drainages and in the Lochsa River drainage. It is also near Forest Service lands in the Lolo Creek drainage. Habitat Soil, humus or very rotten logs in shady, moist forests. Elevations range from low to subalpine. The climate is generally maritime. REMARKS In Finland, the main threats to B. viridis are the change in the microclimate of deforested areas, the decrease of strongly decayed wood in the forests and the diminishing area of suitable shady mesic spruce forest (Laaka and Syrjanen 1990). It is anticipated that similar factors would have impacts in North America as well. Mitigation activities form this species might include surveying to determine presence and distribution; and where located, maintaining decay class 3, 4, and 5 logs and greater than 70 percent closed-canopy forest habitats for shade. Shelterwood and intensive thinning prescriptions for timber harvest will cause its demise, as logs dry out. Several bryologist have noted that B. viridis often grows with B. piperi, but only half as often (ROD, USDA FS and BLM 1994). REFERENCES Gray, K. 1999. Personal commication. Laaka, S., and K. Syrjanen, K. 1990. Notes on the distribution and ecology of a threatened moss, Buxbaumia viridis (DC.) Moug. & Nestl., in Finland. Memoranda Soc. Fauna Flora Fennica 66:108-11. Lawnton, E. 1971. Moss flora of the Pacific Northwest. Hattori Botanical Laboratory, Nichinan, Japan. 362 pp. 195 plates. ROD: Record of decision for amendments to Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management planning documents and standards and guidelines for management of habitat for late-successional and old-growth forest related species within the range of the Northern Spotted Owl. 1994. U.S. Government Printing Office 1994-589-00001, Washington, D.C.
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