Biodiversity of peatmosses (Sphagnum)

The National Science Foundation and the National Geographic Society have been supporting research over the last four years on the systematics, phylogeny, and global biodiversity patterns of peatmosses (Sphagnum).

Peatmosses dominate many habitats in which they occur, forming deep peat deposits in boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Boreal peatlands currently function as a net sink for atmospheric CO2 and have profound impacts on regional patterns of hydrology owing to the unique moisture-holding capacity of Sphagnum gametophytes.

The Duke herbarium houses the most important collection of peatmosses from the southeastern United States, as well as extensive collections from throughout the rest of North America. The southeast is home to several unique and endemic species of Sphagnum. In addition, faculty and staff associated with the herbarium have conducted recent collecting expeditions to Scandinavia, central Europe, Alaska, Ecuador, and Chile.

Analyses using molecular information have been applied to a range of evolutionary problems in the peatmosses (1).

(1) Shaw, A. J., Cox, C. J., & Boles, S. B. 2003a. Polarity of peatmoss evolution: who says mosses have no roots? American Journal of Botany 90: 1777-1787.

Shaw, A. J., Cox, C. J., & Boles, S. B. 2003b. Global patterns of peatmoss biodiversity. Molecular Ecology 12, 2553-2570.

Shaw, A. J., Cox, C. J., & Boles, S. B. 2004. Phylogenetic relationships among Sphagnum sections Hemitheca, Isocladus, and Subsecunda. Bryologist 107: 189-196.

Shaw, A. J., Cox, C. J., & Melosik, I. 2004. Diversification of peatmosses: a phylogenetic approach. In: Molecular systematics of bryophytes: progress, problems & perspectives (eds. Goffinet B, Hollowell VC, Magill RE), Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 98. St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

Shaw, A. J., Cox, C. J., & Boles, S. B. (2005) Phylogeny, species delimitation, and hybridization in Sphagnum section Acutifolia. Systematic Botany 30: 16-33.

Shaw, A. J., Melosik, I., & Cox, C. J. & Boles, S. B. 2005. Divergent and reticulate evolution in closely related species of Sphagnum section Subsecunda. Bryologist 108: 363-376.

Shaw, A. J. & Cox, C. J. In press. "Biodiversity value" of species in Sphagnum sect. Acutifolia. American Journal of Botany

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