Genetic and environmental effects on morphology and asexual reproduction in the moss, Bryum bicolor
- Ithaca College, NY (USA)
A distinctive form of Bryum bicolor, characterized by stoutly excurrent costae and abundant asexual gemmae, occurs on heavy metal-contaminated tailings of the Conrad Hill Mine in the Piedmont of North Carolina. Plants from two mine site populations, plus two other populations from Richmond, Virginia, were grown on three types of soil in order to determine the degree to which morphological traits, including the number of gemmae per plant, can be modified by substrate. All populations grew equally well in the mine soil, and there was no evidence that plants from the mine site populations were physiologically adapted for growth on the contaminated tailings. Leaf dimensions, costa length, and number of gemmae per stem were strongly influenced by substrate, although some differences between populations were maintained under experimental conditions. Populations also differed in the efficacy with which plants regenerated from gametophytic fragments.
- OSTI ID:
- 6521302
- Journal Information:
- Bryologist; (USA), Vol. 93:1; ISSN 0007-2745
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
METALS
TOXICITY
MOSSES
PHYSIOLOGY
BIOLOGICAL ADAPTATION
MINES
MORPHOLOGY
NORTH CAROLINA
PLANT GROWTH
REPRODUCTION
TAILINGS
TOLERANCE
BRYOPHYTA
ELEMENTS
FEDERAL REGION IV
GROWTH
NORTH AMERICA
PLANTS
SOLID WASTES
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
USA
WASTES
560300* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology