Bryophytes of Bolivia
This web site is devoted to the diversity and distribution of Bolivian bryophytes. There are approximately 1450 species of bryophytes for Bolivia, a projected number of about 500 hepatics and 950 mosses. A more precise estimate of Bolivian bryophyte diversity will require greater studies both in the field and herbarium.
The primary goal at present is to provide documentation and description of 900 moss species that are presently accepted for Bolivia; that number is expected to increase. This level of diversity for Bolivian mosses accounts for approximately 10% of the estimated number for the world, and roughly 60% recorded for the tropical Andes. In an effort to provide a more complete knowledge of Bolivian bryophytes a checklist is provided for the hepatics and hornworts (see link below) that records 438 species distributed among 110 genera and 37 families; our current estimate is 477 species, 110 genera and 35 families.
Efforts presently under way include several facets related to Bolivian bryophytes. This encompasses continued fieldwork, characterization of the bryophyte diversity and composition of the major ecoregions, data basing collections, and for mosses preparation of descriptions and illustrations.
Political map of Bolivia. Courtesy of FAN (Fundación Amigos de la Naturaleza) of Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
Principle Objectives of the Bolivian Moss Project
Inventory
The primary focus of future fieldwork will be on core areas of the major vegetation types (12). This has a dual purpose of obtaining data to aid in characterizing which bryophytes are found in a particular vegetation type, and selecting areas within a particular vegetation type that are unexplored or that have been inadequately sampled.
Data Basing
There are now more than 17,000 bryophyte collections presently data based in TROPICOS that can be accessed over the Internet. This represents a substantial increase in available data to the scientific community; prior to the year 2001 there were somewhat less than 2000 collections in MOST. Efforts are now underway in data basing all bryophyte collections at the Herbario Nacional de Bolivia in La Paz (LPB). This phase of the data basing was completed in 2007. All collections at LPB have now been repacketed. The next phase will involve processing the backlog of several thousand unnamed Marko Lewis collections. Approximately half of this unnamed backlog lacked label information (we now have the collection data kindly provided recently by Marko); the remaining half of these collections contained labels. Identifying these collections will be the greater task, in addition to processing and data basing. Future efforts, identifying the Lewis collections and continued fieldwork, will more than double the number of collections that will be available on the Internet, providing a wealth of information on the ecology and distribution of Bolivian bryophytes.
Taxonomic Treatment of the Mosses
The primary objective, as noted above, is a floristic treatment entitled Mosses of Bolivia. This involves the preparation of descriptions and illustrations for an estimated 900-1000 species. Both descriptions and illustrations will be incorporated within the larger framework of the Mosses of the Tropical Andes that is already accessible over the Internet. The initial descriptions will be in English, and later in Spanish. The final product will be a concise illustrated treatment of the Bolivian mosses in Spanish.
Characterization of Bryophytes in the Ecoregions
One of the secondary objective is to ascertain the composition and diversity of each of the ecoregions recognized within Bolivia with regard to bryophytes. An initial classification differentiating seven vegetation types will be employed.
Map of Montane Forest (Yungas and Tucuman-Bolivian) in Bolivia represented by the distribution of Plagiomnium rhynchophorum. From TROPICOS.
Five ecoregions (Amazon, Dry Inter-Andean Valleys, Puna, Tucuman-Bolivian and Yungas montane) of the seven recognized are reasonably complete. Greater sampling effort will be needed for the Chiquitano and Chaco.
Links
See also link to Bolivia on the Mosses of the Tropical Andes Page under:
Collaborators. LPB: Claudia Aldana, Ninel Sanjines; MUB: Maria Cano, Mayte Gallego, Juan Jimenez.
Project Illustrator: Eliana Calzadilla (USZ).
Acknowledgements. The political map is provided with permission of FAN (Fundación Amigos de la Naturaleza) of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. The project, Mosses of Bolivia, is funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (DEB-0542422); a previous grant (DEB-9626747) also assisted with limited fieldwork and infrastructural development for Bolivian institutions (BOLV, HSB, LPB, USZ).