''Calymperastrum latifolium'' is the sole species in the
monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...
moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
''Calymperastrum''. It is a poorly known moss, having been collected only three times. All three collections were from the trunks of ''
Macrozamia
''Macrozamia'' is a genus of around forty species of cycads, family Zamiaceae, all of which are endemic to Australia. Many parts of the plant have been utilised for food and material, most of which is toxic if not processed correctly.
Descripti ...
'', in the
Southwest Botanic Province of
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. It is presumed endemic to the region, making it the only moss genus known endemic to that state.
Description
This moss grows in a low turf, yellowish green from above but yellowish brown below. It has unbranching stems about six millimetres in length, with a reddish-brown mat of hairs on their lower half. These support numerous narrow spathulate leaves from 2.0 to 3.1 millimetres long. Nothing is known of its sexual structures and
sporophyte
A sporophyte () is the diploid multicellular stage in the life cycle of a plant or alga which produces asexual spores. This stage alternates with a multicellular haploid gametophyte phase.
Life cycle
The sporophyte develops from the zygote pr ...
s.
Taxonomy
This taxon was first collected from near
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
in the 1840s, and published as ''Calymperes latifolium'' in 1846 by
Georg Ernst Ludwig Hampe, in Volume II of
Johann Georg Christian Lehmann's ''
Plantae Preissianae
''Plantae preissianae sive enumeratio plantarum quas in australasia occidentali et meridionali-occidentali annis 1838-1841 collegit Ludovicus Preiss'', more commonly known as ''Plantae preissianae'', is a book written by Johann Georg Christian Leh ...
''.
In the 1980s, a careful examination showed it to be only superficially similar to ''
Calymperes
''Calymperes'' is a genus of mosses belonging to the family Calymperaceae.
Species:
* ''Calymperes acanthoneuron'' P. de la Varde
* ''Calymperes aeruginosum'' Hampe ex Sande Lac.
* ''Calymperes afzelii'' Sw.
* ''Calymperes schmidtii'' Broth.
...
'' (
Calymperaceae
Calymperaceae is a family of haplolepideous mosses (Dicranidae) in the order Dicranales.
Genera
The family Calymperaceae contains seven genera:
*'' Arthrocormus''
*'' Calymperes''
*'' Exodictyon''
*'' Exostratum''
*'' Leucophanes''
*'' ...
). It was held to belong to a different family, the
Pottiaceae
The Pottiaceae are a Family (biology), family of mosses. They form the most numerous moss family known, containing nearly 1500 species or more than 10% of the 10,000 to 15,000 moss species known.
Genera
The family has four subfamilies and 83 gen ...
, but did not fit into any of that family's published genera. In 1985, therefore,
Ilma Grace Stone
Ilma Grace Stone (1913 – 2001), née Balfe, was an Australian botanist who specialised in bryology. She was an author, collector, and researcher of Australian mosses, a subject on which she lectured and wrote.
Scientific career
Stone studied ...
published ''Calymperastrum'' and transferred ''C. latifolium'' into it.
Since publication the genus has been treated only once, in R. H. Zander's 1993 ''Genera of the Pottiaceae: Mosses of Harsh Environments''. Zander found its morphology to be transitional between the Pottiaceae and the Calymperaceae, having many properties characteristic of the latter, and many properties characteristic of both. The only character of ''Calymperastrum'' that does not occur in the Calastraceae is the presence of a leaf hydroid strand.
In 1999 the genus was accepted as valid in Crosby's ''
A Checklist of Mosses''.
Distribution and habitat
This moss has only been collected three times, once from near Perth, and twice from the vicinity of
Windy Harbour
Windy Harbour is a holiday settlement surrounded by D’Entrecasteaux National Park. It is located 27 km south of Northcliffe, on the south coast of Western Australia east of Augusta and west of Nornalup. It lies just east of Point D' ...
. It is therefore presumed
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the
Southwest Botanic Province of
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. This would make it the only endemic moss genus in Western Australia, although the region is thought to contain a further three endemic species of non-endemic genera.
Ecology
All three collections of this moss were found growing as an
epiphyte
An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...
on the trunk of a ''
Macrozamia
''Macrozamia'' is a genus of around forty species of cycads, family Zamiaceae, all of which are endemic to Australia. Many parts of the plant have been utilised for food and material, most of which is toxic if not processed correctly.
Descripti ...
''. It is therefore postulated, but by no means certain, that the species has a preference for this genus.
Because there are so few known populations of this moss, the
Department of Environment and Conservation has rated it "Priority Two - Poorly Known Taxa" on the
Declared Rare and Priority Flora List.
See also
*
Mosses of Western Australia
References
Further reading
*
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q16797262, from2=Q5024661
Bryophyta of Australia
Flora of Western Australia
Pottiaceae
Monotypic moss genera