Above- and below-ground species richness of bryophytes in Estonian mires: diversity and differences

ABSTRACT

Introduction.

In temperate zones, the main peat-forming plants are bryophytes, and the restoration capacity of disturbed peatland depends largely on the availability of suitable bryophyte diaspores. We investigated the species richness of bryophytes in the above-ground flora and diaspore bank of three types of mire common in Estonia and northern Europe: ombrotrophic bogs, poor fen and rich fen.

Methods.

The above-ground flora was recorded and diaspore bank samples were collected from study sites in eastern Estonia representing bog, poor fen and rich fen (three sites per mire type). For each mire type, the diaspore bank samples from the study sites were blended and placed in a growth chamber for 6 months, and the bryophytes that subsequently emerged were identified.

Key results.

In total, 54 bryophyte species were found, including six liverworts. Of the three mire types, rich fen had the most species both above and below ground. The number of species in the diaspore bank was lowest in bog (8) and highest in rich fen (27). Three species with conservation value were found: Hamatocaulis vernicosus (in the above-ground flora only) and Meesia longiseta and Splachnum ampullaceum (in the diaspore bank only). The species richness of the bryophyte diaspore bank was similar and significantly related to that of the above-ground bryophyte flora.

Conclusion.

In temperate-zone mires, the diaspore bank can be a depository of species that have disappeared from the above-ground flora. The local diaspore bank could a valuable source of species richness for the restoration of disturbed mire communities.

KEYWORDS:

• Diaspore bank
• liverwort
• mire
• moss
• rare species
• restoration

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the editors and three referees for their valuable comments on the manuscript. Triina Heinleht (Tartu) and Kairi Sepp (Tallinn) are acknowledged for their participation in the first stage of the study, and Edgar Karofeld (Tartu) for his assistance with fieldwork in the fens. Ants Kaasik (Tallinn) was consulted on the statistical analyses. Rodney G. O. Burton (Cambridge) checked the English grammar.

Additional information

Funding

The study was supported by Estonian Research Council projects (IUT34-7, PRG609, PRG1121) and the European Regional Development Fund (Centre of Excellence EcolChange).

Notes on contributors

Kai Vellak

Kai Vellak is associate professor in plant ecology at the University of Tartu (TU). Besides carrying out scientific work and teaching, she is head of the botanical collections of the Natural History Museum TU. Her main interests are the vectors driving bryophyte diversity in wetland communities, restoration of degraded mires, and biology of rare bryophyte species.

Tiina Samson

Tiina Samson is a doctoral student in the conservation biology working group, TU. She is researching the ecology of mosses with conservation value.

Miina Rikka

Miina Rikka is a doctoral student in the macro-ecology working group, TU, investigating the ecology of mire bryophytes.

Nele Ingerpuu

Nele Ingerpuu is associate professor in botany at TU. Her main research topics are the ecology, diversity and conservation of bryophytes.