A Report on Plant Ecology about Sphagnum

1. B O T 1 5 0 – F O RTA L E Z A , M . A .
SPHAGNUM

2. SPHAGNUM
• Taxonomy and Evolutionary History
• Description
• Geographical Distribution
• Morphology
• Life Cycle
• Species Interaction
• Importance & Impacts
• Philippine Context
• Conservation

3. I. TAXONOMY & EVOLUTIONARY
HISTORY
• The oldest fossils of the Sphagnopsida belong to the order Protosphagnales.
• Sphagnophyllites triassicus was known to be the oldest species of sphagnum moss
traced from the Triassic period.
• Modern fossils of Sphagnum were dated back from the Jurassic period.
• Taxonomic Key:
Kingdom: Plantae Order: Sphagnales
Division: Bryophyta Family: Sphagnaceae
Class: Bryopsida Genus: Sphagnum
Subclass: Sphagnopsida

4. I. TAXONOMY & EVOLUTIONARY
HISTORY
The success of Sphagnum is due to its ability to create a habitat in which few other
plants can flourish.
Its morphology, anatomy, physiology and composition (organo-chemical) make it an
effective ecosystem engineer.
Organochemical properties:
• Consists mainly of polysaccharides, made up of glucose and galacturonic acid units
• Rich in phenols, including the genus specific and very stable Sphagnum acid [p-
hydroxy-beta-(carboxymethyl)-cinnamic acid]

5. II. DESCRIPTION
• Common names: peat moss, bog moss, turf
moss
• ‘Sphagnum’ would refer to the genus of
between 151 and 350 species of mosses.
• It is the only genus of the family
Sphagnaceae.
• They are capable of holding water of about
16-20 times as much as their dry weight,
depending on the species.
• Aside from acting like a sponge, it is also
known for its uses in several aspects.

6. They are found mostly in damp or wet places, beside streams, in wet woodlands, moorlands and
particularly on bogs. They prefer acidic (low pH) soils and they are not found in woods or in areas
with waters that contain the mineral lime.
III. GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION

7. IV. MORPHOLOGY
The plant exhibits two types of branches:
• pendant branches – aid in capillary movement
• divergent branches – provide the plant structure
A. STEM
- has inner pith and cortical layer
- inner pith: site of food production and storage
- cortical layer: for water absorption and protection
The cortical layer have retort cells that are believed
to help the moss retain water under intense sunlight
and are home to a wide variety of invertebrates and
microorganisms.

8. IV. MORPHOLOGY
B. LEAVES
Sphagnum leaves have unique and unusual
arrangement and they are of two types:
• hyaline cells – large and the most
obvious cells; they have thickened bands
strengthened by fibrils that serve as
supporting material; they help retain water
because they are perforated and dead at
maturity
• chlorophyllous cells – small and slender
cells having chlorophyll to manufacture
food

9. IV. MORPHOLOGY
C. RHIZOIDS
In the absence of roots, rhizoids occur for the Sphagnum moss and these would aid in
anchorage or attachment to their preferred substrate. However, these rhizoids are not
capable of absorbing nutrients.

10. V. LIFE CYCLE
Like other mosses, the Sphagnum also
has alternation of generations where
the haploid gametophyte is dominant
and persistent.
They could either be dioecious or
monoecious but 80% of Sphagnum
species are dioecious.

11. V. LIFE CYCLE
Gametophyte
-have substantial asexual reproduction by
fragmentation, producing much of the living
material in sphagnum peat lands
Sporophyte
-short lived and consists of shiny, black,
spherical spore capsule
-raised on stalks to expose the spores in
aerial setting to facilitate its dispersal

12. V. LIFE CYCLE
• Different kinds of sphagnum mosses grow at
different rates.
• When they die, they do not rot away because
the ground is both wet and acidic.
• Sphagnum mosses produce chemicals which
potentially increases the acidity of water and
further prevent the decay of dead plants.
• The dead remains of sphagnum mosses pile
up and get pressed together to eventually
form the soil we know as peat.

13. VI. SPECIES INTERACTION
Sphagnum mosses provide vital wetland habitats for rare plants and birds.
A. FLORA
• Heathers, bog asphodels, cranberry, bog been and cloudberry
These are colorful plants that grow among sphagnum mosses which are
capable of coping with the harsh conditions in bogs.
• Carnivorous plants (sundew)
They have specially adapted leaves which catch and digest small insects.

14. VI. SPECIES INTERACTION
B. FAUNA
• Huge dragonflies
These dragonflies lay their eggs directly on sphagnum mosses.
• Birds
They feed and nest on bogs, including those rare bird species like the red
throated diver.
• Red deer
They wallow in peat baths to get rid of flies and other parasites.
• Otters and badgers
They search in bogs for eggs and chicks of ground nesting birds.

15. VI. SPECIES INTERACTION
B. FAUNA
• Sphagnum dependent frogs
• Pseudophryne pengilleyi
• Philoria sphagnicola
• Pseudophryne corroboree – assessed by the
IUCN in 2001 as Australia's most endangered
frog
• All these frogs lay their eggs on moist
sphagnum beds instead of laying them on
stagnant waters.

16. VI. SPECIES INTERACTION
B. FAUNA
• Other invertebrates: rotifers, copepods, tardigrade

17. VII. IMPORTANCE & IMPACTS
• Ecological Importance
• Soil conditioner – to increase soil’s capacity to hold water and nutrients by increasing capillary forces
and cation exchange capacity
• Preservation:
*plant fragments and pollen – allow reconstruction of past environments
*human bodies – Tollund Man, Haraldskaer Woman, Clanycavan Man, Lindow Man, Egtved Girl
• Due to the acidity of peat, bones are being dissolved rather than being preserved. Peat
beds can also preserve food as a 2000 year old container of butter/lard was found.

18. VII. IMPORTANCE & IMPACTS
• Ecological Importance
Preservation:
This is attributed to a tanning-like process involving 5-keto-D-mannuronic acid, associated with
sphagnan. Sphagnan suppresses microbial activity by strongly binding N through inactivation of exo-
enzymes and by sequestering essential multivalent metal cation by chelation.

19. VII. IMPORTANCE & IMPACTS
Ecological Impact: Peat Fires
Peat has a high carbon content and can
burn under low moisture conditions. Once
ignited by the presence of a heat source
(e.g. a wildfire penetrating the
subsurface), it burns.
Peat fires are emerging as a global threat
with significant economic, social and
ecological impacts.

20. VII. IMPORTANCE & IMPACTS
• Economic Importance
• moss carpets for interior housing accents
• used in making garden compost and added to
potting mix
• critical element for mushroom production
(pinning)
• fuel for heating and cooking; provide roofing for
houses
• Medical Benefits
• when dried, the sphagnum becomes a good
absorbent and mild antiseptic
• used for centuries as dressing for wounds
because it inhibits bacterial and fungal growth

21. HEALTH HAZARD
Sporotrichosis – caused by infection of the
fungus Sporothrix schenckii
• S. schencki is naturally found in
soil, hay, sphagnum moss, and plants, it
usually affects farmers, gardeners, and
agricultural workers.
• It enters through small cuts and
abrasions in the skin to cause the
infection.
• Sporotrichosis can also be acquired from
handling cats with the disease; it is an
occupational hazard for veterinarians.

22. VIII. PHILIPPINE CONTEXT
Frank C. Gates
-In his journal entitled “A Sphagnum Bog in the Tropics” published online through
JSTOR, he was able to identify a bog in the Philippines along with the students of
College of Agriculture, Los Baños. This was located in Mt. San Cristobal, an extinct
volcano 85 km SE of Manila.
-It has a lake of about 45 by 20 meters and the bog was found out to be developing on
the eastern part of the basin, particularly near the bottom.
-However, this investigation was made between 1913 and 1914 and the bog there may
have disintegrated due to climatic changes.

23. VIII. CONSERVATION
• Due to increased urbanization, farming demands, industrial developments and global
warming challenges, several organizations have campaigned to ensure the
conservation and sustainable use of wetlands in different parts of the world.
• Scottish Wildlife WATCH in Scotland and SANBI (South African National Biodiversity
Institute) for South Africa

24. REFERENCES
Bold, H. C. (1967). Morphology of plants. Retrieved August 26, 2012 from
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphagnum>
Gates, F. C. (1915). A Sphagnum bog in the tropics. Retrieved September 04, 2012 from
<http://www.jstor.org.>
Phephu, N. (2009). Sphagnum. Retrieved August 26, 2012 from
<http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantqrs/sphagnum.htm>
Scottish Natural Heritage and Forestry Commission. All about...sphagnum moss. Retrieved August 26,
2012 from <http://www.snh.org.uk/pdfs/education/sphagnum%20moss.pdf>
Sphagnum moss. Retrieved August 26, 2012 from
<http://www.bio.brandeis.edu/fieldbio/Survival/Pages/sphagnummoss.html>
The Public Face of Biology 321, UBC. Introduction to bryophytes. Retrieved August 26, 2012 from
<http://blogs.ubc.ca/biology321/?page_id=54>