Mosses and the men who love them - Part XII

[timebomb]

Hi, everyone,

It's been a while - a long while - since I made the last "mosses and the men who love them" post. I have to confess that these days, I am distracted by other interests and I can't seem to find the time or the enthusiasm to write such posts anymore. But I know there are quite a few of you out there who are passionate about the mosses you keep in your tanks and you would dearly love to know more about their identities. So although I have to drag myself to the computer to do this, I will continue doing so because I know some of you will find my efforts worthwhile.

For this report, I have 4 chapters. They are:

1. A new Fontinalis from the USA
2. Layer Moss
3. A Liverwort from Hokkaido, Japan
4. Rock Moss
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1. A hobbyist who goes by the nickname of Hoochi sent me a moss which he collected from a lake in northern Illinois. From a few strands, he managed to grow lots of it in his tank. Here's the picture he posted on AQ:


Hoochi was pretty certain that the moss is a Fontinalis but it did not look like F. antipyretica (Willow Moss) to him. Well, he's right on both counts. The professor examined the moss and he said it's Fontinalis sphagnifolia. How does he know that? First, he has to establish the genus. One of the characteristic of Fontinalis is they have large alar cells. These are the cells at the corners of the leaves. Here's a picture:


To establish the species, the professor has to look for other characteristics. The stems are more slender than the other Fontinalis -that’s one - but the characteristic that tells him this moss is F. sphagnifolia is that the leaves exhibit 2 growth patterns. The leaves at the tips wrap themselves around the stem giving it a pointed appearance while the leaves lower down fall away from the stem. Here's a picture I lifted from the professor's moss book. Take a look at diagram E.


Here's a close-up I took of Hoochi's moss:


We already have 2 other Fontinalis circulating in the hobby. They are Fontinalis antipyretica (Willow Moss ) and Fontinalis antipyretica var. gigantea (Giant Willow Moss). I put a stalk of each of the 3 Fontinalis side by side so you can see the difference. From left to right, F. Sphagnifolia, F. antipyretica and F. antipyretica var. gigantea:


I would say F. sphagnifolia deserves a common name as it grows beautifully underwater. Would "Slender Willow Moss" be a good name? You decide.

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2. Bioplast has a moss called "Layer Moss" because apparently, it forms layers when grown in their tanks. Here’s a pic:


For a while, I thought it was just another Vesicularia. However, the professor said it's a species of Taxiphyllum. We know there are 5 Taxiphyllum's circulating in the hobby, namely,
a. Taiwan Moss (Taxiphyllum alternans)
b. Flame Moss (Taxiphyllum sp)
c. Spiky Moss (Taxiphyllum sp)
d. Java Moss (Taxiphyllum barbieri)
e. Mini-Java Moss (Taxiphyllum sp)

So now we have a new one. Unfortunately, as with Flame, Spiky and Mini-Java, the professor cannot be certain about the species as Bioplast can't tell us where the moss originated from. The professor knows it's a Taxiphyllum because the cells are long and narrow - a distinct characteristic of the Taxiphyllum genus. Here's a pic:


He knows it's not any of the 5 Taxiphyllum's circulating in the hobby because this new one has a row of large basal cells on each of their leaves, a characteristic that is not found in the other Taxiphyllum's. Here's a pic:


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3. A couple of years ago, Mr Tan, the owner of Bioplast was on holiday in Hokkaido, Japan where he picked up a moss. He had a hard time just keeping it alive at first but with perseverance, he finally managed to grow it beautifully in his tanks. Here's a pic:


At first glance, it appears to be a moss but on closer examination, you can tell it’s a liverwort. How so? Well, it’s in the arrangement of the leaves. With liverworts, the leaves are often neatly arranged in 2 rows, one on each side of the stem. Here’s a pic:


What you cannot see with your naked eye, however, is a 3rd row of leaves. They exist on this liverwort . They are smaller and are positioned between the other 2 rows of leaves. Here’s a microscopic pic of a stem:


The professor is an authority on mosses but when it comes to liverworts, he’s less so. To determine the identity of a liverwort, he will have to, in his own words, start from page 1 and go through every page of his liverwort book before he can find the answer. And it’s a very thick book, mind you. So for the moment, all he can tell us is that this liverwort belongs to the family, Lejeuneaceae.
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4. Bioplast has a moss which they said I gave to them a few years ago. Honestly, I can’t remember. Over the years, many hobbyists have sent mosses to me and usually, after a while, I will give them to Bioplast. I can’t keep track of all the mosses as many eventually die off when grown underwater. And with those that survive, many look so similar it’s very hard to tell one from the other. Anyway, Bioplast claimed the moss I gave them came from a hobbyist who collected it in Sydney, Australia. I have faint memories of a young man from Malaysia who visited me one day with many samples of mosses, some of which he got from hobbyist friends while others were mosses he collected from Sydney where he had his tertiary education. I’m sorry to say I can’t recall his name as this happened quite a few years ago.

Anyway, it’s quite a beautiful moss. Here are some pics:



The professor said it’s a species of Racopilum. Each leaf has a long costa, so long it protrudes out of the leaf itself. Here’s a pic:


The professor said this isn’t a true aquatic moss although it seems to grow pretty well in Bioplast’s tanks. To be considered truly aquatic, a moss has to complete its full life cycle under water. This one does not. It needs to be above water to throw out its spores which are carried through the air by wind. In its natural habitats, it’s often found growing on the surface of rocks on the sides of streams and rivers. In Thailand where this moss is fairly common, it goes by the common name, Rock Moss.
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That’s all for my report. If you have a moss you want me to bring to the professor, please bear in mind these 3 conditions.

1. The moss has to be able to survive underwater. Because it would be quite useless to us if it can't. We love mosses but specifically we love only those that can be grown in aquariums. So if you have collected a moss from a pond, stream or lake near your house and you want it identified, please try to grow it in your tanks first before sending it to me.
2. You have to know where the moss was collected from. Without the country of origin, the professor cannot make a positive identification. But I'm willing to make an exception with this rule if the moss is already fairly well-established in the hobby. In other words, if many hobbyists are growing the moss, I will be quite happy to bring it to the professor even if we don't know where it originated from. At the very least, the professor can still tell us the genus even if we will never get to know the species.
3. The moss must be something new to the hobby. It would be quite unfair to ask the professor to examine an aquarium moss that he has already seen. It takes quite a bit of time and work before he can establish the identity of a moss so I would like to bring him something new each time.

Thank you.

Loh K L

[jwuog]

Thank you! Really appreciate the effort. This will keep me occupied for 10 minutes.

[cannon129]

As always great writeup, explanation and pictures from Loh. Highly appreciate the effort you have put in. I am a proud owner of a bit of Lejeuneaceae (No:3)

Cheers

Vince

[Shadow]

talking about moss, what happen to aquamoss web site? hasn't been update for very long

[rodriguesroyston]

Thanks Loh for a lovely write-up. It's really nice to read articles written by you on the various Moss you come across.

[Royston]

Thank you for the detail write up its great with so many details.

[stephan]

Many thanks KL and Professor Tan for the update. We really appreciate your hard work. Mosses and the men who love them continues to be THE SOURCE of information on aquarium mosses. This series has answered alot of my questions on the subject and has avoided me having alot of headaches.

I am not so sure however about the definition of an aquatic moss as given above. To my knowlege even obligate aquatic mosses in nature including Fontinalis spp. and Fissidens fontanus produce sporophytes when exposed to the air. Most of the other mosses we grow in our tanks are usually terrestrial in nature with amphibious capability, and have their spores travel through the arial route in nature. On the other hand underwater sporophyte formation in Vesicularia species (as can sometimes be seen in aquaria) does not appear to lead to spore release. The sporophyte's capsule of mosses usually has to dry out (dehiscence) in order for the lid to open and release spores.

[BaoLong]

talking about moss, what happen to aquamoss web site? hasn't been update for very long

I also saw this issue. There does not have any new threads as posts about Mosses. What is wrong? People do not like much, do they?

[amber2461]

This is a lovely post, thank you for posting it.

cheers
Marge

[jamesneo]

I saw a new moss at Colorful (just outside the shop, display set).

Unlce Richard say it is a new moss with no name yet.
but it's look like the layer moss above, have anyone verify it?
Thanks.