Reproductive biology and population structure in the rare copper moss, Scopelophila cataractae
- Ithaca College, NY (USA)
Scopelophila cataractae is one of about seven species of bryophytes that ar known as copper mosses because of their ecological association with copper or other metals. Like other copper mosses, S. cataractae is geographically widespread, occurring in North and South America, Europe and Asia, but is extremely rare throughout its range and is disjunct across tremendous distances. In North America, the species occurs at only a few localities in California, Arizona, Texas, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania, and an absence of sporophytes indicates that sexual reproduction does not occur here. Plants from both metal-contaminated and uncontaminated soils exhibit tolerance of metals and there is no evidence of differentiation among populations in terms of substrate requirements or tolerances. All North American plants studied thus far are monomorphic at eight enzyme loci, except those from the Texas populations, which differ at one peroxidase locus. Plants from anthropogenic metal-contaminated sites in the eastern US are uniformly male (or sterile) whereas those from natural sites in the southern Appalachians (North Carolina), Cumberland Plateau (Tennessee), and Santa Rita Mountains (Arizona) are uniformly female (or sterile). All plants from California and Texas are completely sterile. Geographic disjunctions between male and female plants explains the absence of sexual reproduction, and suggests episodes of long distance dispersal.
- OSTI ID:
- 6522319
- Journal Information:
- American Journal of Botany; (USA), Journal Name: American Journal of Botany; (USA); ISSN 0002-9122
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
MOSSES
REPRODUCTION
BIOLOGICAL ADAPTATION
COPPER ORES
GEOGRAPHICAL VARIATIONS
LAND POLLUTION
POPULATION DYNAMICS
SOILS
TOLERANCE
BRYOPHYTA
ORES
PLANTS
POLLUTION
VARIATIONS
540220* - Environment
Terrestrial- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
560300 - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
551000 - Physiological Systems