Mosses and Liverworts

/Home/Homework Help - Bryophytes (Mosses & Liverworts)

Mosses and Liverworts
Scottish Natural Heritage

Introduction
When Scotland emerged from its mantle of ice, it had been scoured bare, leaving rounded hills, jagged mountains, deep valleys, undulating lowlands, lakes and wetlands. All were ripe for colonisation by plants, and the group best equipped to move in quickly were the most ancient of the land plants, the bryophytes – mosses, liverworts and hornworts – pioneers of rock, soil and water, which are perfectly adapted for rapid dispersal by their vast numbers of tiny wind-borne spores. The diversity of Scotland’s geology and the cool, wet climate favoured rapid colonisation by a wide range of bryophytes, and as trees became increasingly dominant, so the bryophytes diversified further. The long history of man’s destructive activities has brought about loss of both mossy habitats and species, but has also produced new habitats and new incomers from overseas, right up to the present day.

Please visit the web site for more information.