Cheilothela chloropus
Cheilothela chloropus (Brid.) Broth.
Ditrichaceae
Conservation status. Vulnerable [VU D2].
Morphology and biology. Perennial acrocarpous moss forming up to 2 cm high tufts. Stems regularly forking, or with shrub-like branches, thread-like. Leaves erect, pressed against stem, with triangular ovate base and long awl-like point. Margin flat, entire. Lower leaves smaller than upper ones. Nerve wide, in upper leaves projecting in stout point. Sporophytes slightly inclined and curved, reddish brown, with darker protruding stripes, when dry with longitudinal folds. Unisexual.
Habitats and populations. Plants grow on dry soil in pastures and on rocks on south-facing slopes in lowlands and montane regions.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Vitosha Region (Vitosha Mt), Rhodopi Mts (Central – above Parvenets village).
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula (Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Serbia) and other parts of Europe (UK, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Crete, European part of Turkey), SW Asia, N Africa. Oceanic-Mediterranean species.
Threats. Limited distribution, low dispersal potential, air and soil pollution, waste contamination, overgrown by shrubs after pasture abandonment.
Conservation measures taken. One of the species localities is in the area of Vitosha Nature Park and in a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Long-term study, assessment of trends in habitat changes, and prognosis for population development.
References. Velenovsky 1902; Mickiewicz et al. 1966.
Author: Anna Ganeva
