Syntrichia laevipila
Syntrichia laevipila Brid.
Pottiaceae
Conservation status. Vulnerable [VU D2].
Morphology and biology. Perennial acrocarpous moss forming olive green to brownish cushions. Shoots simple or slightly branched, to 1.5 cm long. Leaves spreading when wet, broadly spatulate, slightly constricted at the middle, margin flat or slightly recurved at midleaf, leaf apex broadly rounded, nerve well developed, excurrent in a long smooth hyaline or weakly denticulate hair. Uni- or bisexual. Reproduces mainly by means of leaf-shaped gemmae formed in the axils of upper leaves.
Habitats and populations. Grows on the bark of broadleaf trees. The populations have restricted distribution and low density.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Black Sea Coast (Southern – at Ropotamo River). Reported for Rila Mts.
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula, C Europe, Morocco, Canary Islands, the Azores, Algeria, Asia, North America, southern parts of South America, Australia. Sub-oceanic/sub-Mediterranean species.
Threats. Major threat is habitat degradation directly due to forest felling and destruction of suitable substrates, and indirectly due to the changes in microclimate of the habitat (air humidity and light regime). The species is sensitive to atmospheric pollution. The small number of populations makes the species sensitive to stochastic processes.
Conservation measures taken. The population is within Ropotamo Strict Nature Reserve 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. Šmarda 1970; Petrov 1975.
Author: Rayna Natcheva
