Hi, folks,

When I was with the professor last week, he mentioned that chances of hobbyists like us stumbling upon a new species of moss or just a rare one, are very low. This is because when hobbyists like us look for mosses, we tend to search for them in places that bryologists have already visited many times. So it isn't a surprise to him that so far, almost all the mosses we brought for his identification, have already been described. Actually, I would have said "all" and not "almost all", if not for the unsolved case of the mysterious 17th Fissidens

Anyway, the purpose of this post is to let you know that if you're the moss-hunter type, the only way to find the rare species is to get "off the beaten track". You may think, as you bash your way through a forest, that no one has been there before you. You'll be surprised.

So go deep into the jungle or climb the highest mountain. And take heart. The professor admitted that even he himself who has been to many remote corners of planet Earth, has not seen many of the mosses described in his books. And that's what he's hoping for actually - that one day, I'll bring a moss to his lab, that for him, has only existed in books.

To sum up the post - In order to find the rare moss or a new species, you have to bravely go where even angels fear to tread

Loh K L