Pseudocalliergon trifarium
Pseudocalliergon trifarium (F.Weber & D.Mohr) Loeske
Calliergon trifarium (F. Weber & D. Mohr) Kindb.3
Campyliaceae
Conservation status. Vulnerable [VU D2].
Morphology and biology. Perennial pleurocarpous moss forming yellowish brown to brownish patches or mats. Shoots to 25 cm long, prostrate, slightly branched. Leaves imbricate, concave, ovoid with rounded apex, sometimes hooded, margin entire; nerve single, ending ca. 2/3 of leaf length. Leaf base with auricles of larger colourless cells reaching the nerve. Unisexual, rarely with sporophytes.
Habitats and populations. Grows in fens and slowly flowing streams in the spruce belt and above. The populations have restricted distribution and low density.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Rila Mts (Surugyol lakes).
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula (Bulgaria, Montenegro, Slovenia), W and C Europe, Iceland, Greenland, C Asia, North America. Sub-Antarctic/subalpine species.
Threats. Major negative factor is habitat degradation due to pollution, drainage and climate aridisation, which leads to lowering of air humidity and overgrowing of habitats by competitive species of higher plants. The small number of populations and low reproductive potential make the species vulnerable to stochastic processes.
Conservation measures taken. The population in Rila Mts is within Rila National Park and in site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. To study the dynamics of numbers and area of the populations, as well as the biology and ecology of the species in Bulgaria, to elucidate the threatening factors and monitor the populations.
References. Stefanoff 1971.
Author: Rayna Natcheva
