Scorpidium scorpioides
Scorpidium scorpioides (Hedw.) Limpr.
Campyliaceae
Conservation status. Vulnerable [VU D2].
Morphology and biology. Perennial pleurocarpous moss forming dark green to yellowish brown or reddish brown and purple groups. Shoots to 20 cm long, prostrate, simple or slightly branched, vermiculate, with curved tips. Leaves imbricate, hooked or curved, concave, leaf apex shortly acuminate to obtuse, margin entire, nerve short and double, or lacking. Unisexual, rarely with sporophytes.
Habitats and populations. Grows on muddy bottoms at the margins of Sphagnum-dominated mires and fens in subalpine areas. The populations have restricted distribution and low density.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Balkan Range (Central – Zlatishko-Tetevenski Balkan at Bolovan peak).
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula (Bulgaria), W and C Europe, Iceland, Greenland, N and C Asia, Japan, New Guinea, North America, New Zealand. Boreal 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 the Balkan Range is within Central Balkan National Park and in a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. To study the dynamics of the numerical strength 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. Petrov 1970.
Author: Rayna Natcheva
