tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/mosses-18495/articlesMosses – The Conversation2023-07-10T15:54:26Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2091822023-07-10T15:54:26Z2023-07-10T15:54:26ZHow to recognise a temperate rainforest in Britain and Ireland when you see one<p>The term “temperate rainforest”, or “Celtic rainforest”, has rapidly gained public attention in the UK recently. </p>
<p>In February 2023, British insurance company, Aviva, awarded <a href="https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/news/new-fund-help-wildlife-trusts-restore-rainforests-britain">£38 million of funding</a> for the restoration of these rainforests. These restoration efforts have even caught the interest of Prince William, who has announced plans to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/03/prince-william-to-expand-duchy-of-cornwalls-temperate-rainforest-wistmans-wood">double the size of Wistman’s Wood</a>, an iconic fragment of ancient woodland on his Dartmoor estate. </p>
<p>Britain was once covered with trees. But over thousands of years, ancient woodland in wetter areas of the country’s west were cleared and converted into pasture for sheep and cattle. By the start of the 20th century, Britain and Ireland had become the <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2018.00253/full">least-wooded region</a> in Europe, with only small fragments remaining in both countries’ western coastal rainforest zones.</p>
<p>But how much of this woodland actually counts as rainforest? The complex variation among different types of woodland makes it difficult to classify them as either rainforests or non-rainforests. And while the climate in Britain and Ireland is wet relative to the south and east of Europe, the question remains: how wet is wet enough to support a rainforest? </p>
<p>To understand if an area can support a rainforest, it’s important to consider not just the mean annual rainfall, but also that it rains across the seasons. Some areas in the Mediterranean basin receive the same amount of annual rainfall as parts of Great Britain. But this rain is concentrated in the winter, and prolonged periods of drought during the summer prevent the formation of a recognisable rainforest. </p>
<p>In Britain and Ireland, the climate is characterised by lower seasonality in rainfall, with dry summers being the exception rather than the rule. However, <a href="https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/approach/collaboration/ukcp/index">most climate models</a> predict that this will change in the future, meaning that fewer areas of these islands will be able to support rainforests.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A view of what remains of Wistman's Wood." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536535/original/file-20230710-23-z8k8mq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Prince William plans to double the size of Wistman’s Wood.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/view-wistmans-wood-dartmore-devon-england-2283975363">Bourne for nature/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>But rainfall alone does not determine the presence of rainforests. The availability of water in the soil, which is influenced by factors such as soil depth, texture and organic matter content, plays a crucial role in supporting rainforest trees. Even in areas with high rainfall, thin soils can lead to conditions prone to drought. </p>
<p>So, this leaves us with a dilemma: how can you spot a rainforest in Britain and Ireland?</p>
<h2>1. Characteristic types of plant</h2>
<p>The most iconic plant types characteristic of temperate rainforests are the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/epiphyte">epiphytes</a>. These are plants that grow above the ground and attach themselves to the stems of trees or shrubs. </p>
<p>Epiphytes, including <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/orchid">orchids</a>, are an important component of biodiversity in tropical rainforests. By contrast, most of the epiphytes in temperate rainforests are “lower plants”, such as ferns and plants lacking a vascular system to move water within them, like <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/moss-plant">mosses</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/liverwort">liverworts</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/lichen">lichens</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A close-up shot of moss growing on a tree branch." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536526/original/file-20230710-25-xsvb1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Plants such as moss are characteristic of temperate rainforests.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/green-moss-grows-on-old-trees-2301179671">Alexandr Macovetchi/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<h2>2. Horizontal precipitation</h2>
<p>Epiphytes gain some of their moisture from water that trickles down the trunks of trees during heavy rainfall (a process called “stem flow”). But these plants do not solely rely on rain. </p>
<p>In upland or coastal environments, where ground-level cloud or mist is common, another important source of moisture for epiphytes is horizontal precipitation (droplets of water that are suspended in the cloud). This moisture source is particularly important for the epiphytes that are most susceptible to drought, such as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Hymenophyllaceae">filmy ferns</a> and some mosses and lichens.</p>
<h2>3. Woody climbers</h2>
<p>The UK’s temperate rainforests have several other features that are reminiscent of their tropical counterparts. One such feature is woody climbers (or <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/liana">liana</a>) that use trees to ascend to the forest canopy. Classic examples of these plants in Britain and Ireland are <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/ivy-plant">ivy</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Clematis">clematis</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/honeysuckle">honeysuckle</a>. </p>
<p>However, the presence of woody climbers alone is not indicative of a temperate rainforest. While ivy, for example, is most abundant in wetter forests, these three liana species can be found across a range of woodland types in Britain and Ireland, even in the drier eastern regions.</p>
<h2>4. Tree structure</h2>
<p>The species of tree found in rainforests in Britain and Ireland are not good indicators of their rainforest status. The dominant canopy tree in many is <a href="https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/sessile-oak/">sessile oak</a>, which is the same species that dominates many forests producing straight stems of high-quality oak timber in northern France.</p>
<p>What better distinguishes a rainforest in Britain or Ireland is the structural characteristics of the trees. In rainforests near the west coast, such as on Dartmoor, the trees tend to be short, with leaning trunks and low branches. </p>
<p>However, this small tree structure is unlikely to be a direct result of high rainfall. The canopy trees of temperate rainforests in even wetter areas of coastal Oregon, Washington State and British Columbia in North America reach at least twice the height (40 metres or more). The distinctive short stature of trees in Britain’s rainforests is instead probably influenced by a combination of factors, including exposure to high winds and infertile thin soils, both of which are characteristic of the Atlantic coastal and upland environments of western Britain and Ireland.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Small and twisted oak trees growing among rocks in a mossy wood." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536537/original/file-20230710-25-x4od63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rainforest trees in Britain and Ireland tend to be short, with leaning trunks and low branches.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/twisted-gnarled-dwarf-oak-trees-growing-1817854715">Chris JG White/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>The temperate rainforests of Britain and Ireland are rapidly assuming an iconic status, conjuring up a vivid image of mist, moss and convoluted trees. </p>
<p>But these woodlands are more than just visually captivating – they are rare habitats that are crucial for many endangered species, especially epiphytes. Unfortunately, they are also vulnerable to the effects of climate change. This makes them a fitting focus for new initiatives targeting their restoration.</p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John Healey receives funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK Government, Welsh Government, Woodknowledge Wales. </span></em></p>Only fragments of Britain’s “temperate rainforest” remain – here’s some tips to help you identify one when you come across it.John Healey, Professor of Forest Sciences, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2041142023-05-30T20:07:35Z2023-05-30T20:07:35ZPhotos from the field: spying on Antarctic moss using drones, MossCam, smart sensors and AI<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526950/original/file-20230518-15-jkyrps.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C0%2C4001%2C3017&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Krystal Randall</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Antarctic continent conjures visions of white ice and blue sky. But not far from Australia’s Casey Station, 3,880km due south of Perth, moss beds emerge verdant and green. </p>
<p>Sadly, the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0280-0">health of these moss beds is declining</a> due to changing climate conditions, ozone depletion and heatwaves. Yet our understanding of the problem is limited. Conducting research in Antarctica is difficult. Periods of data collection are short, and there can be years between each research opportunity. Fortunately, new technology offers solutions. </p>
<p>In December 2022, we travelled to Casey Station. We spent two months in the field – combining our skills in biology, flying drones, programming and artificial intelligence – to learn more about the moss and find better ways to remotely monitor biological changes. </p>
<p>We mapped large moss beds and trialled a new sensor system that can deliver continuous, year-round moss data. While this research is ongoing, we’re thrilled to share the early results with you here.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Collecting moss data" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527184/original/file-20230519-17-fjyr76.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The scientists at work near Casey Station. Left to right: Dr Johan Barthélemy and Dr Krystal Randall.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Johan Barthélemy</span></span>
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<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/an-epic-global-study-of-moss-reveals-it-is-far-more-vital-to-earths-ecosystems-than-we-knew-203141">An epic global study of moss reveals it is far more vital to Earth's ecosystems than we knew</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Miniature forests, bustling with life</h2>
<p>Plants need sunlight, warmth and liquid water. Antarctic plants face months of darkness, freezing temperatures and drought from frozen water – but moss has adapted to this hostile environment. </p>
<p>Moss is the dominant plant life in Antarctica. It provides habitat for invertebrates, microbes and fungi, which make up more than 99% of Antarctica’s land biodiversity. The moss beds resemble miniature forests, bustling with life.</p>
<p>Antarctic moss creates its own warm microclimate, using pigments to absorb sunlight. This warmth aids photosynthesis and helps the mosses to melt snow to obtain liquid water. The tiny hills and valleys across moss beds determine the amount of light mosses receive and creates differences in their microclimates and health.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A sign to protect the moss beds in Antarctica" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526968/original/file-20230518-17-yttmb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mosses are the dominant plant life in Antarctica.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Krystal Randall</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Once we reached the moss, we’d carefully balance on rocks to take samples and place data loggers. These consisted of four sensors that measured canopy temperatures at different positions in the moss bed. We also measured photosynthesis and collected moss samples for pigment analysis, which indicates health and stress levels. </p>
<p>The below photo depicts a moss bed with our equipment attached. You can see the complex micro-topography and a mosaic of healthy and stressed mosses. Healthy moss is green and velvety. Stressed mosses are red and eventually turn grey.</p>
<p>Mosses growing just centimetres apart can experience vastly different microclimates. In the photo below, some mosses had warmed up to 19°C (next to the red marker), while only about 30cm away the moss was at 0.6°C (next to the white marker).</p>
<p>Collecting this data enables us to explore connections between the physical structure of the moss beds, microclimates and indicators of moss health.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarcticas-moss-forests-are-drying-and-dying-103751">Antarctica's 'moss forests' are drying and dying</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A moss bed and temperature data logger." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526958/original/file-20230518-15-q1aef2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mosses growing just centimetres apart can experience vastly different climates.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Krystal Randall</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Smart sensors, cameras and transmitters</h2>
<p>While in Antarctica, we also tested the first prototype of an intelligent, autonomous and long-term sensing platform. It offers scientists more information than previous data-collection devices as it can collect and transmit data over an extended period outside regular summer field campaigns, including winter time.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Remote sensing platform" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527166/original/file-20230519-23-9at7da.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The remote sensing platform watching a moss bed.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Johan Barthélemy</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The prototype monitored the moss bed near Casey Station for a month and a half. Its sensors captured light intensity, ambient air temperature and humidity, moss canopy temperature and, finally, energy exchanged between soil and air. A webcam, affectionately nicknamed MossCam, captured regular images of the moss bed.</p>
<p>We also installed the first antenna in Antarctica for <a href="https://www.thethingsnetwork.org/article/the-first-lorawan-gateway-running-in-antarctica">the LoRaWAN wireless network</a>. This network is low power, long range and free to use. This allowed us to send data back to Australia in near real-time and <a href="https://uow.to/mosscam">display it on a website dashboard</a> that is visible to Australians only. </p>
<p>After some early bug fixes, the platform performed better than expected. We brought it home at the end of the season for further refinement and deployment next season.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ctiW3TZvF5I?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A 24-hour time-lapse captured by MossCam. Johan Barthelemy.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Drones and hyperspectral imaging</h2>
<p>We sent drones on 25 flights, collecting data from two <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/protected.html">Antarctic Specially Protected Areas</a> (ASPAs 135 and 136). </p>
<p>Operating drones in the Antarctic presents significant challenges. The proximity to the magnetic pole disturbs the GPS navigation, and strong winds make it difficult to fly. Severe cold reduces battery life – and it’s also tough on the operator’s fingers. We customised drones with RTK (<a href="https://blog.emlid.com/introduction-to-rtk-gps/">real-time kinematics</a>, a technique to eliminate position errors) GPS, multiple redundancies and battery warmers to increase their resilience to harsh conditions. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bDTZ9VveO1o?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">We used a compact mini drone as a reconnaissance unit, scouting new areas and providing videography like this. Juan Sandino.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our drones could capture 5,000-10,000 images on each flight. They were also equipped with high-tech sensors. These sensors are programmed to record “spectral signatures”, which is a term we use to describe a kind of optical identity or visual “DNA” that differentiates landscape features like moss, rock and snow within the image. </p>
<p>These images will be stitched together and mapped to their ground coordinates. Using machine learning, we will train a model to identify vegetation, including moss, lichen and cyanobacteria. We will also develop vegetation and hydrology maps, 3D fly-throughs and virtual reality experiences to support decision-making around conservation and management. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=281&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=281&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=281&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=353&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=353&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527162/original/file-20230519-23-1z26d2.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=353&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Hyperspectral data showing healthy moss (blue), stressed moss (red) and rock (green).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Juan Sandino</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/drones-help-scientists-check-the-health-of-antarctic-mosses-revealing-climate-change-clues-83817">Drones help scientists check the health of Antarctic mosses, revealing climate change clues</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>One journey ends, while another is just beginning</h2>
<p>Often while we were working, curious penguins wandered over to see what we were doing. Making friends with these locals was always the highlight of the day.</p>
<iframe width="100%" height="758" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wovm6zCZHOM" title="Welcome to our office! Krystal Randall." frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<p>But after a couple of fantastic months in the field, it was time to pack up and head home. On the 60km journey inland to Wilkins Aerodrome we ventured into the Antarctic Circle. We waited in -20°C to watch our plane land on the blue ice runway before boarding and flying back to Tasmania. There, it felt like we’d just woken up from a dream. </p>
<p>Our Antarctic adventure was over, but we all felt so grateful for the experience. </p>
<p>Now we’re exploring the data, to see what stories it can tell, while further developing our moss sensing platform. We hope to return to Antarctica to deploy it at the end of the year. </p>
<p><em>The authors travelled to Casey Station as part of the Australian Research Council Special Research Initiative Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF).</em></p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Group photo at the Antarctic Circle sign" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526955/original/file-20230518-19-8b1c34.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The team as they crossed the Antarctic Circle: Dr Johan Barthélemy (left), Dr Krystal Randall (centre), Ashray Doshi (front), Dr Juan Sandino (right) and Prof Barbara Bollard (back right).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Krystal Randall</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/toughness-has-limits-over-1-100-species-live-in-antarctica-but-theyre-at-risk-from-human-activity-181258">Toughness has limits: over 1,100 species live in Antarctica – but they're at risk from human activity</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Johan Barthélemy received funding from Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), an Australian Research Council Special Research Initiative. He currently works at NVIDIA.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Barbara Bollard receives funding from Securing Antarctica's Environmental Future (SAEF), an Australian Research Council (ARC) Special Research Initiative (SRI). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Juan Sandino is affiliated with the QUT Centre for Robotics (QCR), Australia, and receives funding from Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), an Australian Research Council (ARC) Special Research Initiative (SRI).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Krystal Randall is affiliated with the Centre for Sustainable Ecosystem Solutions (CSES) in the School of Earth, Atmospheric and Life Sciences at the University of Wollongong (UOW). Krystal has previously received funding from the Antarctic Science Foundation, and currently receives funding from Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), an Australian Research Council (ARC) Special Research Initiative (SRI).</span></em></p>It was the trip of a lifetime for an Australian research team studying moss in Antarctica. After two months at Casey Station they returned with great videos and loads of data for further analysis.Johan Barthélemy, Developer Relations Manager, NVIDIA and Honorary Senior Research Fellow, University of Wollongong, University of WollongongBarbara Bollard, Professor of Computational Conservation, Auckland University of TechnologyJuan Sandino, Postdoctoral research fellow, Queensland University of TechnologyKrystal Randall, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of WollongongLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2050482023-05-26T12:48:26Z2023-05-26T12:48:26ZThe secret world of moss, ancient ancestor of all plants and vital for the health of the planet<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526604/original/file-20230516-30960-s3vsmi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=27%2C10%2C3615%2C2719&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Macromitrium microstomum is found throughout New Zealand on the trunks or branches of smooth-barked trees, or on rock</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Silvia Pressel</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When people consider extraordinary plants, most probably don’t spare a thought for moss. It blends in against the green background of plant life, and seems to grow everywhere – whether you want it to or not. </p>
<hr>
<iframe id="noa-web-audio-player" style="border: none" src="https://embed-player.newsoveraudio.com/v4?key=x84olp&id=https://theconversation.com/the-secret-world-of-moss-ancient-ancestor-of-all-plants-and-vital-for-the-health-of-the-planet-205048 &bgColor=F5F5F5&color=D8352A&playColor=D8352A" width="100%" height="110px"></iframe>
<p><em>You can listen to more articles from The Conversation, narrated by Noa, <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/audio-narrated-99682">here</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>But this group of plants, which actually comprises between 12,000 and 15,000 species, is astonishing. Their almost unique resilience allows them to grow practically everywhere on Earth. They are helping scientists understand the evolution of life, and are one of the most ancient plant groups alive today. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-023-01170-x">A recent study</a> by an Australian research team found that mosses are the lifeblood of habitats around the world, with plants and soil in better shape almost everywhere they grow. </p>
<p>Despite their importance, mosses are often overlooked due to their diminutive size. The smallest mosses, known as micromosses, measure only a few millimetres in length. Even the <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/3240800">largest moss</a>, <em>Dawsonia superba</em>, a species native to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, only reaches heights of up to 50cm – a giant among mosses, yet still smaller than the average houseplant. </p>
<p>But in fact, mosses help hold up entire ecosystems.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513999/original/file-20230307-18-3frmra.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Many people think of plants as nice-looking greens. Essential for clean air, yes, but simple organisms. A step change in research is shaking up the way scientists think about plants: they are far more complex and more like us than you might imagine. This blossoming field of science is too delightful to do it justice in one or two stories.</em>
<em><a href="https://theconversation.com/topics/plant-curious-137238?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=PlantCurious2023&utm_content=InArticleTop">This article is part of a series, Plant Curious</a>, exploring scientific studies that challenge the way you view plantlife.</em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Drivers of critical ecosystem services</h2>
<p>The contributions of mosses to the structure and function of modern ecosystems is often overlooked, lagging behind our understanding of more complex plants. The Australian study examined mosses’ relationship to their habitats in detail, and found they are critical to soil health. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528026/original/file-20230524-27-yt1duq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Macromitrium urceolatum, found predominantly in Southern hemisphere.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Silvia Pressel</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The researchers collected moss samples from ecosystems around the globe – from tropical rainforest to polar landscapes through to arid deserts. Combining their findings from these samples with an analysis of previous research, their results showed that mosses are key players in every habitat in which they are found. Mosses store huge amounts of carbon, help <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/signals/signals-2019-content-list/infographics/agriculture/view">the soil nutrient cycle</a>, and also the decomposition of organic matter. </p>
<p>Mosses can even come to the rescue in disturbed ecosystems. Research examining the area around the <a href="https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/cjb-2020-0127">Mount St. Helens volcano</a> following a devastating eruption in the early 1980s found mosses were among the first forms of life to reappear.</p>
<p>Some types of moss, including the <em>Sphagnum</em> species, absorb and hold water in their tissues. This regulates water flow in the area, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1639/0007-2745(2000)103%5b0503:SAKGIH%5d2.0.CO;2">preventing flooding and creating peatland habitats</a> which are home to rare plants and animals.</p>
<p>Mosses also provide unique habitats for microscopic life. Tardigrades, eight-legged micro-animals, are also known as <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/23019349?casa_token=2DcJgFNdDBYAAAAA%3A3M93hLIkWN2DD0glTFEoCcCqKTg-4gL1Gt_zul-wI8RBFnILmObsSulqoCYMacTaZlRH5uHcrV6N0UTLMskGvBszuwRY6FgT6NTCmZDPBp5inkamkBku">moss piglets or bears of moss</a>, thanks to their habit of clambering through moss “jungles” in search of their next meal. Moss piglets are nearly indestructible and can even survive in outer space, by entering a death-like state called cryptobiosis. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="3d rendered illustration of a water bear" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527052/original/file-20230518-20831-6zdhgh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Moss piglets are one of the smallest-known animals with legs.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/3d-rendered-medically-accurate-illustration-waterbear-1254153061">SciePro/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Ancient ancestors</h2>
<p>Mosses, along with liverworts and hornworts, are part of a group of plants known as bryophytes. These <a href="https://doi.org/10.1639/0007-2745(2000)103%5b0187:EOTMML%5d2.0.CO;2">evolved more than 400 million years ago</a> and still share many characteristics with the first plants to have emerged on to the Earth’s land surfaces – their small size and lack of true roots, for example. And while most plants have a continuous column of water which flows inside them via a xylem and phloem, mosses don’t – just like some of the most ancient plants in Earth’s history. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Diagram showing a plant xylem and phloem" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526202/original/file-20230515-8760-2ove0u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Most plants have a xylem, but not mosses.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/plant-diagram-xylem-phloem-1644596842">gstraub/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Instead, these tiny plants have <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rstb.2000.0616">their own conducting systems</a> to move substances around their bodies. They absorb water and nutrients from rainwater and dust deposits across their surfaces. Their hair-like “roots”, known as rhizoids, anchor mosses to the surface they are growing on. </p>
<p>Mosses are almost unparalleled in their ability to survive harsh environments. This makes them excellent for studying the evolution of plants, much of which occurred during challenging conditions on Earth. </p>
<p>The study of modern mosses’ and other bryophytes’ genetics and physiology has given researchers insights into the adaptations that allowed plants to transition from water to land – for example, the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169534715001366">formation of partnerships with fungi</a> to access soil nutrients. Their incredible resistance to environmental stress <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2011.04.032">such as drought</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S1011-1344(01)00269-X">UV radiation</a> was also crucial to their ability to evolve on land. </p>
<p>One of the most critical features of land mosses is their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1026598724487">desiccation tolerance</a>, which is the ability to survive near-complete drying out. When water is scarce, mosses can enter a state of suspended animation where they greatly reduce their metabolic activity, allowing them to survive until conditions improve. Some species, such the desert moss <em>Syntrichia caninervis</em>, can survive a hundred years in this dormant state and revive within hours of rewetting. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/528030/original/file-20230524-17-q4xy6y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Canary thread moss is widespread in Britain.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Silvia Pressel</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Studying the mechanisms of this ability in modern plants helps scientists understand how <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369526617301887">ancient plants might have adapted to land</a>. It is possible that studying desiccation tolerance in mosses could help scientists discover new ways to protect crops from extreme drought in the future.</p>
<p>These little plants are also entwined with human history. From exploiting the antiseptic properties of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2017.07.025">moss for wound healing</a> to using broom moss (<em>Dicranium scoparium</em>) for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-97415-2_2-1">relief of constipation</a>, mosses have played a substantial role in relieving human suffering.</p>
<p>So, perhaps we should think twice before raking out mosses from the lawn. Instead, take a moment to consider the natural beauty of their delicate green tendrils – and their history as some of the most intrepid explorers in Earth’s history.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205048/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katie Field receives funding from the ERC, the NERC, and the Leverhulme Trust. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Silvia Pressel receives funding from the ERC, NERC, Newton Fund. </span></em></p>Take a moment to consider the natural beauty of mosses – and their history as some of the most intrepid explorers in Earth’s history.Katie Field, Professor in Plant-Soil Processes, University of SheffieldSilvia Pressel, Senior Researcher Lead in Life Sciences, Natural History MuseumLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2031412023-05-01T20:00:42Z2023-05-01T20:00:42ZAn epic global study of moss reveals it is far more vital to Earth’s ecosystems than we knew<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/523382/original/file-20230428-14-xrem6f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=38%2C12%2C4137%2C2830&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/UxyWwU6n_ts">Dylan Shaw/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Mosses are some of the <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.39.110707.173526">oldest land plants</a>. They are found all over the world, from lush tropical rainforests to the driest deserts, and even the wind-swept hills of Antarctica. </p>
<p>They are everywhere; growing in cracks along roads and pathways, on the trunks of trees, on rocks and buildings, and importantly, on the soil.</p>
<p>Yet despite this ubiquity, we have a relatively poor understanding of how important they are, particularly the types of moss that thrive on soil. </p>
<p>New global research on soil mosses <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01170-x">published today in Nature Geoscience</a> reveals they play critical roles in sustaining life on our planet. Without soil mosses, Earth’s ability to produce healthy soils, provide habitat for microbes and fight pathogens would be greatly diminished. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520000/original/file-20230410-14-agkvcs.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Soil moss with fruiting bodies (capsules). David Eldridge, Author provided.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A global survey of soil mosses</h2>
<p>The results of the new study indicate we have probably underestimated just how important soil mosses are.</p>
<p>Using data from 123 sites across all continents including Antarctica, we show that the soil beneath mosses has more nitrogen, phosphorus and magnesium, and a greater activity of soil enzymes than bare surfaces with no plants. </p>
<p>In fact, mosses affect all major soil functions, increasing carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling and the breakdown of organic matter. These processes are critical for sustaining life on Earth. </p>
<p>Our modelling revealed that soil mosses cover a huge area of the planet, about 9 million square kilometres – equivalent to the area of China. And that’s not counting mosses from boreal forests, which were not included in the study.</p>
<p>The strength of the effect mosses have on soil depends on their growing conditions. They have the strongest effect in natural low productivity environments, such as deserts. They are also more important on sandy and salty soils, and where rainfall is highly variable. </p>
<p>Not unexpectedly, mosses have the strongest effects on soils where <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/plant/Vascular-plants">vascular plants</a> – those that contain specialised tissues to conduct water and minerals – are sparse. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/silver-moss-is-a-rugged-survivor-in-the-city-landscape-113459">Silver moss is a rugged survivor in the city landscape</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>An intimate connection</h2>
<p>Mosses lack the plumbing that allows vascular plants to grow tall and pull water from beneath the soil. This keeps them relatively short, and means they develop an intimate connection with the uppermost soil layers.</p>
<p>Mosses are extremely absorbent and <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/esp.3290160206">can attract airborne dust</a> particles. Some of these particles are incorporated into the soil below. It is not surprising then that they have such a strong effect on soils. </p>
<p>Our modelling shows that, across the globe, mosses store 6.4 gigatonnes more carbon than soils without plant cover. </p>
<p>Losing just 15% of the global cover of soil mosses would be equivalent to global emissions of carbon dioxide from all land use changes over a year, such as clearing and overgrazing.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A forest floor with rich green moss cover seen in the foreground" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523383/original/file-20230428-14-jckx3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Without mosses, the world’s ecosystems wouldn’t thrive nearly as well.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/n2tAkKqtmqc">Eric Prouzet/Unsplash</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Not all mosses are equal</h2>
<p>We also found some mosses are more effective at promoting healthy soils than others. Long-lived mosses tended to be associated with more carbon and greater control of soil pathogens.</p>
<p>The ability of mosses to provide ecosystem services and support a diverse community of microbes, fungi and invertebrates was strongest in locations with a high cover of mat- and turf-forming mosses such as <a href="https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-8137.2012.04254.x"><em>Sphagnum</em></a>, which are widely distributed in boreal forests. </p>
<p>Soils are a huge reservoir of <a href="https://sci-hub.se/10.1351/pac200779040557">soil pathogens</a>, yet the soil beneath mosses had a lower proportion of plant pathogens. Mosses can help to reduce the pathogen load in soils. This ability may have originated when mosses <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2017.00366/full#B75">evolved</a> as land plants.</p>
<h2>A special group in the desert</h2>
<p>A special type of moss flourishes in deserts. They either live hard (perennial mosses) or die young (annual mosses).</p>
<p>Mosses in the family <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/3243765">Pottiaceae</a> are uniquely suited to life under dry and inhospitable conditions. Many have specialised structures that allow them to survive when water is scarce. These include boat-shaped leaves with long hairy tips that help to funnel water into the centre of the plant. Some mosses twist around their stem to reduce the area exposed to the sun and conserve moisture.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519983/original/file-20230409-24-oxavpy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Long hair points on the leaves of <em>Campylopus</em> sp.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">David Eldridge</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Desert mosses also protect the soil against erosion, influence <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/gcb.15232">how much water</a> moves through the upper layers and even alter <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2745.13269">the survival chances of plant seedlings</a>. </p>
<p>Other mosses have special moisture-absorbing cells (papillae) that swell up and provide them with a moisture reserve when conditions are dry.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/519982/original/file-20230409-28-kyly8k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Papillae on the leaf of the moss <em>Crossidium davidai</em>.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">David Eldridge, Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our global study showed that mat- and turf-forming mosses such as <em>Sphagnum</em> had the strongest positive effects on the diversity of microbes, fungi and invertebrates, and on critical services such as nutrient supply. Predictably, longer-lived mosses supported more soil carbon and had greater control of plant pathogens than short-lived mosses.</p>
<h2>Protect the mosses</h2>
<p>Overall, our work shows mosses influence important soil processes and function in the same way vascular plants do. Their effects may not be as strong, but their total cover means mosses are potentially as significant when summed across the whole globe. </p>
<p>But mosses are under increasing threats globally; disturbance by livestock, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320797000153">overharvesting</a>, land clearing and even <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1509150112">changing climates</a> are the greatest threats. </p>
<p>We need a greater acknowledgement of the services that soil mosses provide for all life on this planet. This means greater education about their positive benefits, identifying and mitigating the main threats they face, and including them in routine monitoring programs. </p>
<p>Soil mosses are everywhere, but their future is far from secure. They are likely to play increasingly important roles as vascular plants decline under predicted hotter, drier and more variable global climates. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarcticas-moss-forests-are-drying-and-dying-103751">Antarctica's 'moss forests' are drying and dying</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/203141/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David John Eldridge receives funding from The Hermon Slade Foundation.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo receives funding from the British Ecological Society, the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, and Junta de Andalucía. </span></em></p>Data from 123 sites across all continents, including Antarctica, show mosses affect all major soil functions critical for sustaining life on Earth.David John Eldridge, Professor of Dryland Ecology, UNSW SydneyManuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Ecosystem ecologist, Spanish National Research Council, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2028162023-04-20T16:39:40Z2023-04-20T16:39:40ZUp in smoke: Human activities are fuelling wildfires that burn essential carbon-sequestering peatlands<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518523/original/file-20230330-130-461u7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=175%2C117%2C4661%2C3136&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Smouldering fire in a drained peatland near Fort McMurray, Alta. produces smoke from underground. These ecosystems are affected by rising temperatures, drought, wildfire and various human actions including drainage.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Leyland Cecco)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For centuries, society has scorned bogs, fens and swamps — collectively known as peatlands — <a href="https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-brief/peatlands-and-climate-change#:%7E:text=">treating them as wastelands</a> available to be drained and developed without realizing they’re important buffers against climate-changing carbon emissions.</p>
<p>It’s only recently that humans have realized how vital these wetlands are to regulating our climate, despite negative connotations in derisive expressions like “swamped,” “bogged down” and “drain the swamp.” </p>
<p>Draining the swamp, wherever it might be, could be a catastrophic mistake for humankind as climate change throws punches that these ecosystems can handle much better than others.</p>
<p>But as the changing climate exacerbates the extent of droughts and wildfires, especially in the vast peatlands of the north, these ecosystems are now fighting a losing battle. </p>
<h2>Threats to carbon-sequestering peatlands</h2>
<p><a href="https://peatlands.org/peatlands/what-are-peatlands/">A majority of all the world’s peatlands</a> are found in northern regions. Layered by waterlogged peat topped by living mosses, these peatlands absorb and expel carbon, typically storing a little more than they give off, making them <a href="https://www.clientearth.org/latest/latest-updates/stories/what-is-a-carbon-sink/#:%7E:text=A%20carbon%20sink%20is%20anything,fossil%20fuels%20or%20volcanic%20eruptions.">carbon sinks</a> over time. Over thousands of years, they have stockpiled massive amounts of carbon. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A wetland photographed from above." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=331&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=331&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=331&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=416&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=416&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521996/original/file-20230420-2772-4p6gj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=416&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Over thousands of years, peatlands have accumulated massive amounts of carbon.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Collectively, peatlands hold more carbon than all the world’s forests. <a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/global-assessment-reveals-huge-potential-peatlands-climate-solution">Peatlands account for just three per cent of the world’s land mass</a> but hold about a third of the planet’s stored soil carbon, making them Earth’s most carbon-dense ecosystems.</p>
<p>However, peatlands are under pressure everywhere. They are affected by rising temperatures, drought, wildfire and various human actions, including drainage. In this <a href="https://peatmoss.com/peat-moss-harvesting/">process of draining</a>, the water from the peatlands is allowed to run off through dug-out ditches, thus making the wetland drier. </p>
<p>Individual bogs are drained for agriculture, mining, urban development, wind turbine placement or peat harvesting. So far, between <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-03406-6">seven and 10 per cent</a> of all northern peatlands have been drained.</p>
<h2>Fire and bogs</h2>
<p>Wildfires are becoming <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16006">more frequent and more severe</a>, meaning peatlands will have to be at their best to continue absorbing carbon. </p>
<p>Healthy peatlands are remarkably <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002%2Fece3.9912">resilient to the impacts of fire</a>. A significant amount of carbon is lost both to burning itself and through burn damage that impairs the growth of carbon-sequestering mosses. But these ecosystems are typically able to recover and restore their climate-regulating function within 10 to 30 years. </p>
<p>However, when bogs have been damaged, especially by drainage, they become vulnerable to wildfire.</p>
<p>Even without fire, drained bogs are net contributors of carbon. When they burn, they <a href="https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aaa136">burn much more deeply</a> because their peat reserves are dry and dense. These self-propagating smouldering fires can spew millions of tonnes of carbon and harmful, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097%2FEDE.0000000000000090">toxic smoke</a> into our atmosphere. </p>
<h2>The time to save our peatlands is now</h2>
<p>As climate change accelerates over the coming decades, the interplay between degraded peatlands and hotter fires significantly changes the carbon equation in the environment.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Burned trees and grasses stand out from the stunted greenery in a peatland" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281798/original/file-20190628-94720-1ascytm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A burned peatland in the Fort McMurray wildfire. It is critical to keep our peatlands from burning up,</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Mike Waddington)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-023-01657-w">recently published paper</a>, we found that the direct threat from drainage, coupled with climate-change enhanced wildfires, is accelerating the release of carbon from these peatlands. Simply put, our actions are turning climate-friendly peatlands into liabilities, with potentially devastating consequences.</p>
<p>Our study of natural, degraded and restored forms of peatlands in boreal and temperate regions revealed that the once stable carbon-storing power of our northern peatlands is gradually losing to the effects of fire, and drained peatlands are the biggest culprits for this. </p>
<p>Compromising the healthy peatlands that remain — even if it’s for otherwise beneficial uses such as growing food or helping us move away from fossil fuels — could backfire badly, especially as climatic conditions worsen.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A woman stands next to a pile of moss that remains unaffected by fire." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280559/original/file-20190620-149810-e6ac54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sophie Wilkinson demonstrates the resistance of moss to an experimental fire in a bog during a project conducted in partnership with FP Innovations, Alberta Agriculture and Forestry and the Canadian Forest Service.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Greg Verkaik)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We found that without deliberate restoration efforts for already drained peatlands, and protection for those that remain, our carbon-collecting northern bogs could flip to carbon contributors by the end of this century. This will further accelerate the overall pace of global warming and climate change.</p>
<p>Fire is natural, of course, and some peat will always burn, but the degree and frequency of wildfire is making it harder for peatlands to recover their ability to store carbon after a fire. </p>
<p>Our research shows that it is not only critical to keep our peatlands from burning up, but that there is also an important and viable opportunity to mitigate this impending disaster. But the window for action is shrinking quickly. </p>
<p><a href="https://thenarwhal.ca/opinion-peatland-canada-natural-disasters/">Canada is home to one-third of the world’s northern peatlands </a> and a proven force in restoring drained bogs. </p>
<p>The looming peat fire crisis demands that Canada prioritize protecting its intact peatlands and accelerate their restoration. Reviving the carbon-storing capacity of peatlands would delay their broader conversion from climate benefactors to liabilities, providing precious time to act on climate change.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202816/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sophie Wilkinson receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mike Waddington receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Blazing Star Environmental, McMaster University, Ganawenim Meshkiki, and Henvey Inlet Wind LP.</span></em></p>New research shows that northern peatlands may not help regulate our climate by the end of the century.Sophie Wilkinson, Assistant professor, Resource and Environmental Management, Simon Fraser UniversityMike Waddington, Professor, School of Earth, Environment & Society, McMaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1396952020-06-08T10:06:53Z2020-06-08T10:06:53ZGlacier mice: these herds of moss-balls roam the ice – and we’re uncovering their mysteries<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340109/original/file-20200605-176571-6s7zng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C232%2C3888%2C2310&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Glacier mice were first documented in 1951, but they continue to mystify scientists.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nicholas Midgley</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Glaciers are commonly considered to be cold and barren places that are hostile to life. Plants cannot grow directly on these slowly flowing bodies of ice, but life can be found here nonetheless, and perhaps none of it stranger than the glacier mice.</p>
<p>You might be imagining a small rodent that has evolved an especially thick coat to withstand the cold. But glacier mice are actually balls of moss, each about the size of a tennis ball, and typically shaped into slightly squashed spheres that amass around pebbles on the surfaces of some glaciers. </p>
<p>Where you find one glacier mouse, you tend to find a whole group of them. If you’re struggling to imagine one, they look a bit like tribbles, from the famous <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4wM5KvUGEc">Star Trek episode</a>, or the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jN-1bCAkx7A">rolling trolls from Frozen</a>.</p>
<p>Glacier mice were first documented by a researcher called Jón Eythórsson in 1951, who gave them their strange name (“jökla-mýs” in Icelandic). But it would be over 50 years before scientists properly studied them, and there was a lot that initially baffled them. </p>
<p>How did these plants grow on the icy surface without perishing? How did they manage to form balls, with growing moss on all sides? And, strangest of all, how did they manage to move, <a href="https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1007/s00300-020-02675-6?sharing_token=HN75pdcTvlF-_qsfv-ejJPe4RwlQNchNByi7wbcMAY5WBKeqwPhH-J_RhmuMGX2k3CByeg6kB7QTeIlLQSOoB6DjLsODKdvpBOXYhu0izw-R4ZZso2efOF9pMLeCch14qWcomyhamEEkykx_VMBcm4ktfWg4Zvv0uPCad7ye94s%3D">around 2.5cm each day</a>, with choreographed, herd-like behaviour? </p>
<p>On a research expedition to Iceland, we tried to find some answers.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C1280%2C852&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340079/original/file-20200605-176585-zecscw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Glacier mice litter the ice surface.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/carsten_tb/15208085651/in/photolist-pvc4pb-M7Let4-paTq2i-BGRB8-5zMk7j-5Jcxrg">Carsten ten Brink/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A rolling stone gathers more moss</h2>
<p>Glacier mice don’t appear on just any ice sheet – there are only a few glaciers worldwide where they can be found. In 2012, we travelled to one called Falljökull to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-012-1205-4">study their movements</a>.</p>
<p>We dissected some of these moss balls and inserted accelerometers. These devices measure movement, and are used to orient mobile phones so that if you rotate them, their displays turns accordingly. The data we collected from accelerometers helped crack the puzzle of how moss in contact with the ice can survive when other plants would usually die.</p>
<p>The glacier mice rotated often, at least once every few days. It is this rotation that enables the glacier mice to grow moss around the whole of their outer surfaces – sometimes creating near perfect spheres. If the glacier mice stopped rotating, the moss that comes into permanent contact with the glacier surface would die.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=640&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=640&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340078/original/file-20200605-176554-12dl4od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=640&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Glacier mice can grow to the size of a tennis ball.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Stephen Coulson</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Glacier mice are often found teetering on icy pedestals, and that’s because each of these moss balls actually reduces the amount of melting that occurs underneath it. So over a period of hours and days, the glacier mouse becomes elevated on a pedestal of ice and it eventually rolls off. </p>
<p>This process repeats itself over and over, so that the ball exposes a different surface to the sun each time it falls. In time, this means the moss ball rotates often and evenly enough to prevent any part staying in contact with the ice too long. </p>
<p>Recent research on <a href="https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1007/s00300-020-02675-6?sharing_token=HN75pdcTvlF-_qsfv-ejJPe4RwlQNchNByi7wbcMAY5WBKeqwPhH-J_RhmuMGX2k3CByeg6kB7QTeIlLQSOoB6DjLsODKdvpBOXYhu0izw-R4ZZso2efOF9pMLeCch14qWcomyhamEEkykx_VMBcm4ktfWg4Zvv0uPCad7ye94s%3D">glacier mice in Alaska</a> found that glacier mice can live for more than six years in this pattern. But scientists still don’t know why groups of glacier mice tend to <a href="https://www.npr.org/transcripts/868027341">move herd-like</a> on the ice surface, sometimes south, sometimes west, but always in concert with each other. Wind, gravity and melting patterns <a href="https://www.npr.org/transcripts/868027341">aren’t enough</a> to fully explain the mystery, so research continues.</p>
<p><strong>Glacier mice rotation</strong></p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340066/original/file-20200605-176595-axxmib.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The number of times a glacier mouse fell – and how much it rotated in the process – over the course of one week.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232559378_The_role_of_glacier_mice_in_the_invertebrate_colonisation_of_glacialsurfaces_the_moss_balls_of_the_Falljokull_Iceland">Coulson & Midgley (2012)</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A micro-habitat for microscopic life</h2>
<p>Despite living in one of the coldest environments on Earth, we found that the temperatures inside glacier mice are relatively warm. Over a two-week period in July and August, the internal temperature of the glacier mice reached a maximum of 14.7°C, much higher than the ice surface, which is close to 0°C.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=460&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=460&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=460&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=578&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=578&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340077/original/file-20200605-176554-7b8fuo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=578&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Water bears are microscopic animals that can survive freezing temperatures.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milnesium_tardigradum#/media/File:SEM_image_of_Milnesium_tardigradum_in_active_state_-_journal.pone.0045682.g001-2.png">Schokraie et al. (2012)</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This warmth amid so much frigid cold provides a unique ecosystem for other life, such as microscopic animals that we were surprised to discover living on a glacier. These included springtails (small insect-like animals), water bears (also known as tardigrades, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2008.06.048">the only animals known to have survived in space</a>) and roundworms.</p>
<p>Globally, glacier mice are rare. But where they are found – in places such Alaska, Svalbard and Iceland – they tend to be abundant, with dense groups of mice sometimes forming on areas of the glacier. But climate change may cut the existence of many glacier mice short. </p>
<p>Falljökull, the glacier where we studied these organisms in 2012, has receded by over 800 metres in the last 40 years. In the wake of disappearing glaciers and ice sheets is a rich and unique community of life that we’re only just beginning to understand.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139695/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicholas Midgley receives funding from Nottingham Trent University and Quaternary Research Association.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stephen Coulson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Glacier mice aren’t rodents – they’re mysterious balls of moss that manage to live in one of the world’s harshest environments.Nicholas Midgley, Lecturer in Physical Geography, Nottingham Trent UniversityStephen Coulson, Project Manager, Swedish University of Agricultural SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1318462020-02-17T16:14:36Z2020-02-17T16:14:36ZMeet the insects that are defying the plunge in biodiversity – new findings<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315733/original/file-20200217-10976-1qpvl47.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=82%2C53%2C3155%2C2575&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A ruddy darter dragonfly perches on a stalk in Coleshill Park, Wiltshire, UK.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/ruddy-darter-dragonfly-perched-on-stalk-701737042">Ian_Sherriffs/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 2019, there were <a href="https://theconversation.com/top-five-threats-to-uks-wildlife-and-what-to-do-about-them-new-report-124670">44 million fewer breeding birds</a> in the UK than there were in the 1970s. There are thought to be <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jun/02/last-hedgehogs-in-central-london-survived-by-learning-to-avoid-roads">fewer than one million hedgehogs</a>, compared to <a href="https://theconversation.com/disappearing-hedgehogs-show-familiarity-may-be-a-curse-42914">35 million in the 1950s</a>. Two-thirds of British butterflies have also been on <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/08/rare-uk-butterflies-enjoy-best-year-since-monitoring-began">a downward trend since the 1970s</a>, adding to a grim picture for biodiversity in the UK.</p>
<p>“Biodiversity” simply means the variety of life on earth. Simply put, rich and diverse ecosystems are essential to the way we live. Take the way our food is grown. Agriculture depends on <a href="https://theconversation.com/bumblebees-in-crisis-insects-inner-lives-reveal-what-the-world-would-lose-if-they-disappear-131519">hundreds of different species to pollinate crops</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/feeding-the-world-archaeology-can-help-us-learn-from-history-to-build-a-sustainable-future-for-food-117601">help with pest control</a>. A diverse range of animals, fungi and microbes decompose organic matter and enrich the soil with different micronutrients, making the food we grow more nutritious. A variety of plants also store carbon in their tissue at different rates and quantities, which is invaluable for slowing climate change.</p>
<p>That’s why <a href="https://theconversation.com/revolutionary-change-needed-to-stop-unprecedented-global-extinction-crisis-116166">huge declines in biodiversity</a> are so worrying, particularly among insects. They may not be dear to many of us, but they <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-happens-to-the-natural-world-if-all-the-insects-disappear-111886">make up a large proportion of all living creatures</a>.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315737/original/file-20200217-11005-t4r2n2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Eight-legged friends.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/macro-small-wolf-spider-on-rock-1581059563">L Richardson Photography/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>We’re fortunate in the UK to have very good data on the abundance of some species, particularly birds, butterflies and some mammals. This gives researchers a good understanding of trends over time. But what about everything else? There are many more groups of organisms out there that lack such information. To understand how these less well studied species are faring, we decided to use a different measure – distribution, or where a species can be found.</p>
<p>In our latest <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-020-1111-z">study</a>, my colleagues and I investigated how the distribution of over 5,000 of these UK species has changed over the last few decades, to try and get a broader look at how biodiversity is faring in the UK. </p>
<h2>Little surprises</h2>
<p>Our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-019-0269-1">estimates of species distribution</a> came from observations of species collected by volunteers. These estimates cover more than 5,000 UK species of invertebrates, mosses and lichens and extend back to 1970. </p>
<p>We found that the situation with these groups is more complicated than the average trends of well studied species. Essentially, not everything is declining.</p>
<p>We did find a number of groups, including spiders and freshwater molluscs, whose distributions have declined, which means they’re absent from places they could be found 50 years ago. But overall, the average distribution across the 5,000 species increased by about 11%, with some species expanding into new areas.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/top-five-threats-to-uks-wildlife-and-what-to-do-about-them-new-report-124670">Top five threats to UK's wildlife (and what to do about them) – new report</a>
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<p>When we split these species into groups, we found some very interesting differences. Of the four groups that we assessed, only the invertebrates showed an average decline in distribution. This group included spiders, centipedes, millipedes, slugs and snails, and their average distribution has declined by almost 7%, which means they’re found in fewer places than they were in 1970. </p>
<p>The insect group, which contained over 3,000 species and included ants, ground beetles, soldierflies and fungus gnats, increased its average distribution by almost 6%, although there were considerable variations between species. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315722/original/file-20200217-11000-18qtpd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A caddisfly larvae rests in a cocoon made of tiny pebbles.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/caddisfly-larvae-under-water-built-home-1239227623">FJAH/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Perhaps the most intriguing findings were from freshwater species. This group initially declined between 1970 and the mid-1990s, but their distribution has bounced back to near 1970 levels in recent years. The freshwater insects include dragonflies, mayflies, stoneflies and caddisflies – groups of species that spend most of their lives in freshwater streams and rivers as larvae. All followed the same U-shaped pattern of decline and recovery.</p>
<p>This reversal seems to coincide with the implementation of the EU Urban Wastewater Treatment <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/water-urbanwaste/index_en.html">Directive</a>, so it’s possible that freshwater insects have benefited from efforts to clean up the UK’s rivers. </p>
<p>There was also an increase over time in the group containing mosses and lichens. <a href="https://theconversation.com/citizen-scientists-have-a-role-to-play-in-our-woods-and-cities-18584">Both are sensitive to air quality</a>, so their partial recovery might be due to reductions in air pollution. These positive findings are very exciting, as they suggest that a downward trend can be reversed if the causes of the decline can be addressed.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315719/original/file-20200217-11005-1jzikid.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The prevalence of moss and lichen on outdoor surfaces can reveal a lot about local air quality.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/yellow-tree-lichens-xanthoria-parietina-on-408736705">Olpo/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>It’s important to remember that these are changes in distribution and not the number of individuals in a species. It’s possible that the numbers of the species in the groups studied here have fallen over the same period, but we can’t measure this with the kind of data we used. Spotting the patterns and common responses behind changes in distribution can suggest what the drivers might be.</p>
<p>This research wouldn’t have been possible without all the volunteers that collect the biological records that underpin this study. The UK has a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/bij.12575">long history</a> of biological recording and an interest in natural history that stretches back at least as far at the 19th century. It’s one of a few countries that has national recording schemes that include thousands of people with an interest in observing and collecting data on wildlife. </p>
<p>There are over <a href="https://www.brc.ac.uk/recording-schemes">80 such schemes</a> in the UK, collecting data on everything from insects, birds and mammals to plants and fungi. Without all of this information, we would know almost nothing about the state of the UK’s wildlife. While we may worry about the picture we have, we can take comfort in the fact that there are so many who care enough to give up their time to painstakingly record it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/131846/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Charlie Outhwaite is currently funded by a UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) grant (NE/R010811/1). This work was funded by NERC (NE/L008823/1) and conducted in partnership with the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UKCEH) and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).</span></em></p>While many surveys show the numbers of wildlife falling, there is good news for some species – including pondskaters and various mosses and lichen.Charlie Outhwaite, Postdoctoral Researcher in Biodiversity Change, UCLLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1134592019-03-22T06:49:02Z2019-03-22T06:49:02ZSilver moss is a rugged survivor in the city landscape<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265256/original/file-20190322-195118-r0j7kt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Silver moss can survive almost total dehydration. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">HermannSchachner/Wikipedia</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Sign up to Beating Around the Bush, a series that profiles native plants: <a href="https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/9AE707FA51C4AC1B">part gardening column, part dispatches from country, entirely Australian.</a></em></p>
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<p>Chances are you’ve walked over silver moss (<em>Bryum argenteum</em>) countless times without giving it a second glance. This moss, at home in moist environments as well as hot and cold deserts, is also a common denizen of cities worldwide and finds shelter in our pavement cracks.</p>
<p>Also known as silvery thread moss and silvergreen bryum moss, it grows in all states and territories of Australia, particularly in towns and cities.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarcticas-moss-forests-are-drying-and-dying-103751">Antarctica's 'moss forests' are drying and dying</a>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=802&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=802&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=802&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1008&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1008&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265263/original/file-20190322-36270-n9pp5b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1008&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Conversation</span></span>
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<p>To the naked eye, it appears as a tiny silvery green ribbon or small cushion, with stems up to 1.5cm tall, but often only a few millimetres high. With a hand lens, its crowded, tight buds are visible, while a microscope reveals the reason for its silvery appearance: cells in the top portion of its minute leaves do not have chloroplasts (and therefore no chlorophyll) and do not appear green, but instead make a transparent silvery tip. This portion of the leaf protects the chloroplasts deeper down from harsh sunlight. </p>
<p>Like many others in its genus, the leaves have a rounded appearance with a central rib, or costa, that ends well before the tip. As with most moss, these simple leaves are only one cell layer thick, so it exchanges gases and water with the exterior by diffusion.</p>
<p>The silver moss is a survivor. We remove native vegetation from our cities and clear forest canopies but it can cope with this new version of home. We swap forest floor for hard, impervious surfaces that utterly change how water moves across the landscape – for instance, evaporating much more quickly – but this moss makes use of water when it can, switching on its photosynthesis processes when there’s enough water, and hunkering down when there’s not. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-behind-japans-moss-obsession-50500">What's behind Japan's moss obsession?</a>
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<p>This cycle can occur over the duration of a day, with photosynthesis starting in the early morning light when there’s a little dew on the leaves, and closing down as the day progresses and the moss dries, but it can also play out over much longer periods, even years.</p>
<p>It can do this thanks to its particularly strong tolerance for desiccation, a trait which varies <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07297-3">across moss species</a>. This isn’t just the ability to withstand drought. It’s more radical than that. It is the ability to shut down all metabolic processes in the absence of water, and start them up again when water is available. This might not sound too impressive, but in the majority of plants drying out totally involves serious damage at the cell level, with membranes and cell organelles becoming brittle and breaking and macromolecules such as DNA being damaged beyond repair. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/265266/original/file-20190322-36248-103s86q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Silver moss growing on a Wollongong basketball court.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alison Haynes</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>Silver moss uses sugars to create protective glass-like compounds to protect its cells from irreparable damage. Because of its tough nature, the silver moss is <a href="https://www.biogeosciences.net/15/1161/2018/bg-15-1161-2018.html">widely studied</a> to further understanding of how plants cope with a range of other stresses too, from UV-B radiation and sand burial to trace metals and excessive light. </p>
<p>Silver moss is not showy and quite often looks rather dusty in city environments, but it’s nice to know that the 19th century botanist <a href="http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/mueller-sir-ferdinand-jakob-heinrich-von-4266">Ferdinand von Mueller</a> collected it twice in 1852, in Adelaide, five years after his arrival from Germany. He moved to Melbourne that year, was appointed government botanist, and founded the National Herbarium of Victoria a year later, in 1853. These two samples must have been among the first deposited there, making them our oldest specimens of this species in Australia. </p>
<p>While I don’t know exactly what species were used, Aboriginal Australians took advantage of the <a href="https://www.dnrme.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/1408282/aboriginal-peoples-manage-water-resources.pdf">moisture that moss collects</a>. In Queensland, for instance, Indigenous people used to squeeze out water from a moss clump then replace it carefully, to use again.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/war-and-peat-how-bog-moss-helped-save-thousands-of-lives-in-world-war-i-106630">War and peat: how bog moss helped save thousands of lives in World War I</a>
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<p>For me, moss is on the cusp of the macro and micro world. Just big enough to see with the naked eye, it nonetheless draws you in and down to a smaller world. I’ve become a moss tourist. Whenever I go to a city, I don’t just look up at the sights, I also look down! Mosses like <em>Bryum argenteum</em> remind me of the wild even within the depth of a city landscape. They are a reminder that we may remove native forests, but still the most minute spores of living organisms will come in and find a place to live, if not thrive.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=199&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=199&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=199&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=251&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=251&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238283/original/file-20180927-48650-1veiqyi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=251&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em>Sign up to Beating Around the Bush, a series that profiles native plants: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/BeatingAroundTheBush">part gardening column, part dispatches from country, entirely Australian.</a></em>. Read previous instalments <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/beating-around-the-bush-54029">here</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/113459/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alison Haynes receives an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship. </span></em></p>The moss that grows in pavement cracks and on the edge of basketball courts in every town and city in Australia has a secret superpower.Alison Haynes, PhD Candidate, University of WollongongLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1066302018-11-09T15:23:04Z2018-11-09T15:23:04ZWar and peat: how bog moss helped save thousands of lives in World War I<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244555/original/file-20181108-74754-1dkvp7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C37%2C1551%2C1051&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://wellcomecollection.org/works/t5w999vg?query=L0009341&page=1">Wellcome Collection</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>At 07:30 on July 1, 1916, a private in the British army – let’s call him <a href="https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/this-is-how-british-troops-got-the-nickname-tommies">Tommy Atkins</a> – scrambled out of a trench in front lines and advanced across no man’s land towards the German trenches in the Battle of Albert, the opening phase of the Battle of the Somme. He had covered no more than 30 yards when he felt as if someone had hit him on the back of the head with a mallet. Checking himself dazedly, he realised that he must have taken a bullet in the left shoulder because the whole area was suddenly bright crimson. Private Tommy Atkins had just become one of the 57,470 British casualties on the now-notorious <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zy98xsg">first day of the Somme</a>.</p>
<p>His actions in the next few seconds would ultimately save his life. He tore off the field dressing sewn to the inside of his uniform jacket, ripped it open and applied the contents to his wound before making his way back to the aid post. Tommy Atkins was lucky, not merely because the bullet had not killed him. He was lucky because this was 1916 and not 1914, and the nature of his field dressing therefore meant he had a good chance of staying alive rather than subsequently dying of sepsis caused by infection of his wound. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244554/original/file-20181108-74783-1lb9nci.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A 1918 field dressing issued to British army soldiers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Imperial War Museum</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
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<p>Death as a result of even relatively minor injuries due to sepsis and gas gangrene had been a major problem in the first years of World War I. Appalling conditions in the trenches meant that wounds were generally accompanied by fragments of dirty clothing and the bodily filth plastered about the battlefields. </p>
<p>In 1915, however, an army surgeon named <a href="http://rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk/bbs/activities/field%20bryology/FB110/FB110_Ayres_Sphagnum.pdf">Charles Cathcart</a> recalled that even quite terrible wounds had been successfully dressed on the battlefield in ancient times using a group of bog mosses known as sphagnum. On the basis of some successful trials, he instigated a nationwide programme of bog moss collection to create what would become the standard field dressing issued to all UK and Imperial land forces as an integral part of their uniform. People gathered the humble bog moss across the country, from Bodmin Moor to the far north of Shetland.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244556/original/file-20181108-74751-10zw7vh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Sphagnum in Scotland: the moss is mostly found in peat bogs, forests and moist tundra.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">N Mrgth / shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>Moss provided a number of improvements over the cotton-based dressings used in the early period of the war. Sphagnum is primarily adapted to storing water – vast quantities of it – and it was capable of absorbing more than twice as much blood and fluids as cotton wool, thus initially helping to dry out the wound. </p>
<p>It was fibrous like cotton, and therefore helped to seal the wound, but unlike cotton wool it also appeared to prevent infection of the wound in some mysterious way. It was later discovered that sphagnum <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19187129">releases a chemical called “sphagnan” </a>which inhibits nitrogen uptake by decomposer organisms, sending them into a form of stasis. This is what saved Private Tommy Atkins and thousands like him from a lingering death by sepsis even though the original injury trauma may have been successfully treated.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=382&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=382&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=382&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244584/original/file-20181108-74769-19sy7n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Praise for Dartmoor moss collector John Durant in the Western Times, 1916.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.rammuseum.org.uk/devon-voices/john-durant-1000-miles-to-gather-sphagnum-moss/">britishnewspaperarchive / rammuseum</a></span>
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<p>Despite this record of success, the medical use of sphagnum was largely discontinued after World War I. In part, this may have been because supply chains relied on the rather laborious process of harvesting the moss in the wild. Its later use in certain <a href="https://www.thefreelibrary.com/J%26J+unveils+%27peat+moss%27+sanitary+napkin.-a010610008">sanitary products</a> ended more recently, however, when significant concerns were raised about the environmental damage caused by such wild harvesting. </p>
<p>Indeed, it is the environmental damage caused by the unsustainable harvesting of sphagnum and its semi-decomposed remains – which we know as peat – that has led colleagues and I to investigate a new type of farming called “<a href="https://www.ramsar.org/sites/default/files/documents/library/7_tanneberger-_paludiculture_in_europe.pdf">paludiculture</a>”, namely harvesting wetland products on the re-wetted soils of former wetlands.</p>
<p>In their natural state, such peat soils represent long-term carbon storage, often on millennial timescales. If such soils are damaged, this long-term carbon store is progressively oxidised, releasing lots of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Studies have indicated that turning peat soils into farmland is potentially the largest source of <a href="http://oro.open.ac.uk/50635/">greenhouse gas emissions per unit area</a> in the UK lowlands.</p>
<p>Working with various partners, our research is investigating ways of <a href="https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=BB%2FR021686%2F1">growing sphagnum as a commercial crop</a> on re-wetted organic soils. We are seeking to produce a sustainable growing medium with a view to replacing the use of peat – which is essentially just ancient sphagnum – within both the professional horticulture industry and the retail trade. </p>
<p>We are also exploring with Greenwich University the possibility of re-establishing sphagnum as a modern medical material for use in wound treatment and anti-microbial action, thereby coming full circle to that day on the Somme when the life of Private Tommy Atkins was saved by the extraordinary properties of the material in his field dressing.</p>
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<p><em>Listen to The Anthill podcast on remembering World War I <a href="https://theconversation.com/anthill-31-world-war-i-remembered-podcast-106498">here</a>, or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.</em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/106630/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Lindsay receives funding from Innovate UK and Micropropagation Services Ltd. He is affiliated with the IUCN UK Peatland Programme. He works on the Innovate UK Sphagnum Farming Project in partnership with Micropropagation Services Ltd, Manchester Metropolitan University, Melcourt Industries, Natural England and the Lancashire Wildlife Trust. </span></em></p>Sphagnum moss made ideal field dressings for wounded soldiers.Richard Lindsay, Head of Environmental and Conservation Research, Sustainability Research Institute, University of East LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1037512018-09-25T06:24:14Z2018-09-25T06:24:14ZAntarctica’s ‘moss forests’ are drying and dying<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/237876/original/file-20180925-149958-iv4fh9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Lush moss beds in East Antarctica's Windmill Islands.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sharon Robinson</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The lush moss beds that grow near East Antarctica’s coast are among the only plants that can withstand life on the frozen continent. But our new research shows that these slow-growing plants are changing at a far faster rate than anticipated.</p>
<p>We began monitoring plant ecosystems 18 years ago, near Australia’s Casey Station in the Windmill Islands, East Antarctica.</p>
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<span class="caption">Casey Station is on East Antarctica’s coast. Click map to zoom.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Australian Antarctic Data Centre</span></span>
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<p>As we <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0280-0">report in Nature Climate Change today</a>, within just 13 years we observed significant changes in the composition and health of these moss beds, due to the drying effects of weather changes prompted by damage to the ozone layer.</p>
<h2>Living on the edge</h2>
<p>Visitors to Antarctica expect to see a stark landscape of white and blue: ice, water, and sky. But in some places summer brings a surprisingly verdant green, as lush mosses emerge from under their winter snow blanket.</p>
<p>Because it contains the best moss beds on continental Antarctica, Casey Station is dubbed the <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/wildlife/plants/casey-the-daintree-of-antarctica">Daintree of the Antarctic</a>. Individual plants have been growing here for at least 100 years; fertilised by <a href="https://phys.org/news/2012-07-antarctic-moss-survive-due-ancient.html">ancient penguin poo</a>.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/drones-help-scientists-check-the-health-of-antarctic-mosses-revealing-climate-change-clues-83817">Drones help scientists check the health of Antarctic mosses, revealing climate change clues</a>
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<p>Antarctic mosses are extremophiles, the only plants that can survive the continent’s frigid winters. They live in a frozen desert where life-sustaining water is mostly locked up as ice, and they grow at a glacial pace – typically just 1 mm a year.</p>
<p>These mosses are home to <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/tardigrade">tardigrades</a> and other organisms, all of which survive harsh conditions by drying out and becoming dormant. When meltwater is available, mosses soak it up like a sponge and spring back to life.</p>
<p>The short summer growing season runs from December to March. Day temperatures finally rise above freezing, providing water from melting snow. Overnight temperatures drop below zero and mosses refreeze. Harsh, drying winds reach speeds of 200 km per hour. This is life on the edge.</p>
<h2>Tough turf</h2>
<p>When we first began monitoring the moss beds, they were dominated by <em>Schistidium antarctici</em>, a species found only in Antarctica. These areas were typically submerged through most of the summer, favouring the water-loving Schistidium. But as the area dries, two hardy, global species have encroached on Schistidium’s turf.</p>
<p>Like tree rings, mosses preserve a record of past climate in their shoots. From this we found nearly half of the mosses showed evidence of drying.</p>
<p>Healthy green moss has turned red or grey, indicating that plants are under stress and dying. This is due to the area drying because of colder summers and stronger winds. This increased desertification of East Antarctica is caused by both climate change and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-ozone-hole-leaves-a-lasting-impression-on-southern-climate-34043">ozone depletion</a>.</p>
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<span class="caption">Moss beds, with moss in the foreground showing signs of stress.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sharon Robinson</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>Since the 1970s, man-made substances have thinned Earth’s protective sunscreen, the ozone layer, creating a hole that appears directly over Antarctica during the southern spring (September–November). This has <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-ozone-hole-leaves-a-lasting-impression-on-southern-climate-34043">dramatically affected the southern hemisphere’s climate</a>. Westerly winds have moved closer to Antarctica and strengthened, shielding much of continental East Antarctica from global warming.</p>
<p>Our study shows that these effects are contributing to drying of East Antarctica, which is in turn altering plant communities and affecting the health of some native plant species. East Antarctica’s mosses can be viewed as sentinels for a rapidly drying coastal climate.</p>
<p>But there is good news. The ozone layer is slowly recovering as pollutants are phased out thanks to the <a href="https://theconversation.com/saving-the-ozone-layer-why-the-montreal-protocol-worked-9249">1987 Montreal Protocol</a>. What is likely to happen to Antarctic coastal climates when ozone levels recover fully by the middle of this century?</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-ozone-hole-leaves-a-lasting-impression-on-southern-climate-34043">The ozone hole leaves a lasting impression on southern climate</a>
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<p>Unlike <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-freak-warm-arctic-weather-is-unusual-but-getting-less-so-92590">other polar regions</a>, East Antarctica has so far experienced <a href="https://www.scar.org/library/scar-publications/occasional-publications/3508-antarctic-climate-change-and-the-environment-1/">little or no warming</a>.</p>
<p>Antarctic ice-free areas are currently less than 1% of the continent but are <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-winners-and-losers-of-antarcticas-great-thaw-80140">predicted to expand over the coming century</a>. Our research suggests that this may isolate moss beds from snow banks, which are their water reservoirs. Ironically, increased ice melt may be bad news for some Antarctic mosses.</p>
<p>East Antarctica is drying – first at the hands of ozone depletion, and then by climate change. How its native mosses fare in the future depends on how we control greenhouse gas emissions. But with decisive action and continued monitoring, we can hopefully preserve these fascinating ecosystems for the future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103751/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Melinda Waterman has received funding from an Australian Postgraduate Award Scholarship, Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering postgraduate award, an Endeavour Research Fellowship and University of Wollongong’s Global Challenges Program.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sharon Robinson receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering, the Antarctic Science Grants and the University of Wollongong’s Global Challenges Program</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Johanna Turnbull does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Mosses are the only plants that can withstand life in East Antarctica’s frozen landscape. But a new study shows that life is getting even harder, as ozone loss and climate change make conditions even drier.Melinda Waterman, Associate lecturer, University of WollongongJohanna Turnbull, Associate Lecturer in Biology, University of WollongongSharon Robinson, Professor, University of WollongongLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/838172017-09-11T22:50:19Z2017-09-11T22:50:19ZDrones help scientists check the health of Antarctic mosses, revealing climate change clues<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185463/original/file-20170911-1380-1ke6wkz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mosses are sensitive to even minor changes in their living conditions.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sharon Robinson</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Drones are helping scientists check the health of Antarctic mosses, revealing clues on the pace of climate change. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vUW_tP3Izr0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The scientists say their method could be used for similar research in other harsh environments like desert or alpine regions.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Mosses are sensitive to even minor changes in their living conditions, and scientists traditionally tramped through difficult terrain to collect data on them. </p>
<p>Using the specially-designed drones is faster, kinder to the environment and delivers detailed images that satellite imagery cannot match. </p>
<p>Drones also allow to map much larger areas than previously possible, showing how the moss health responds to meltwater in real time. </p>
<p>These methods could be used for similar research in other harsh environments like desert or alpine regions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/83817/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Zbyněk Malenovský has received grants from the ARC and Australian Antarctic Science. He is affiliated with the Surveying and Spatial Sciences Group at the University of Tasmania, the Centre for Sustainable Ecosystem Solutions at the University of Wollongong and the Global Change Research Institute at the Czech Academy of Sciences.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Arko Lucieer has received grants from the Australian Research Council and Australian Antarctic Science Grant Scheme. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sharon Robinson receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Australian Department of Environment, and the Herman Slade Foundation and in the past has received funding from the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering and the Committee for University Teaching and Staff Development. She is a Member of the United Nations Environment Programme Environmental Effects Assessment Panel and the Australian Research Council College of Experts. She is an Editor for Global Change Biology. Member of Society for Experimental Biology and Australian Society of Plant Scientists.</span></em></p>Mosses are sensitive to even minor changes in their living conditions, and scientists traditionally tramped through difficult terrain to collect data on them.Zbyněk Malenovský, Researcher in Remote Sensing of Vegetation, University of TasmaniaArko Lucieer, Associate Professor in Remote Sensing, University of TasmaniaSharon Robinson, Professor, University of WollongongLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/505002015-12-10T11:18:33Z2015-12-10T11:18:33ZWhat’s behind Japan’s moss obsession?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104935/original/image-20151208-4898-1tvnkf7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Who's the moss?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-96689458/stock-photo-closeup-of-a-moss-in-a-japanese-garden-with-stones-and-tree.html?src=pd-same_artist-96689485-Orn4rRVsc_255j6ZwxBeug-1">Andreas Altenburger/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s the latest craze in a country known for its eccentric tastes and <a href="http://adage.com/article/news/japan-s-latest-fads-marketable-u-s/127684/">quirky obsessions</a>. The Japanese have gone gaga for…moss? </p>
<p>In 2011, Hisako Fujii published a book titled <a href="http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%82%B3%E3%82%B1%E3%81%AF%E3%81%A8%E3%82%82%E3%81%A0%E3%81%A1-%E8%97%A4%E4%BA%95-%E4%B9%85%E5%AD%90/dp/4898153097">Mosses, My Dear Friends</a>. It went on to sell over 40,000 copies, which helped trigger a wave of <a href="http://quirker.co.uk/story/japanese-women-stare-at-moss">moss viewing parties</a> among young women who call themselves “moss girls.” </p>
<p>Since then, <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/in-japan-moss-gathers-new-fans-1446513218">according to The Wall Street Journal</a>, moss-themed drinks and rings that sprout moss instead of gems have joined moss balls (<em>marimo</em>) as popular wares. Now moss devotees can go on <a href="http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/07/27/national/moss-viewing-trips-catching-on-among-women/#.VmcqkcuFs21">special tours</a>, during which guides lead small groups of fanatics deep into Japan’s lush, mossy forests, where they inspect the plants with magnifying glasses. </p>
<p>So what’s behind Japan’s moss craze? Is it a random, flash-in-the-pan fad? Or is it more deeply rooted in Japanese values, customs and aesthetics? </p>
<h2>Eastern sensibilities</h2>
<p>Of the roughly <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233986259_Systematics_of_the_Bryophyta_%28mosses%29_From_molecules_to_a_revised_classification">12,000 species</a> of moss worldwide, Japan possesses a whopping 2,500 varieties – a relative windfall for enthusiasts devoted to tracking down, studying and documenting their different forms. Japan’s humid climate creates the perfect conditions for the plant to thrive, and gazing at moss during Japan’s hot, humid summers can actually have a relaxing effect (one reason many will hang moss balls under the eaves of their houses). </p>
<p>Perhaps due to its prevalence on the island nation, moss is deeply rooted in Japanese culture. Most Japanese gardens, also known as Zen gardens, have moss. (A Japanese garden is thought to be incomplete without the plant.) And the Japanese national anthem even contains the word “moss.” (In English: “May your world go on for thousands of years / Until pebbles merge into one giant rock and covered with moss.”)</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104936/original/image-20151208-32398-13pic5z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">No Japanese garden is complete without moss.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-133901621/stock-photo-stone-stairway-in-a-japanese-garden.html?src=xikD7NHFUxO08Z3QzVI-Fg-1-24">'Garden' via www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>In Western cultures, people will often view nature as something to be conquered. But instead of trying to dominate nature, the Japanese attempt to coexist with it, approaching the natural world with the attitude of a polite guest. Accordingly, there’s an inherent urge to preserve it; while there’s a robust <a href="https://www.google.com/#q=moss+removal&tbm=shop">moss-removal market</a> in many cultures, many Japanese wouldn’t fathom destroying something so innocuous.</p>
<p>Japanese culture also values age and history. Because moss doesn’t grow dramatically overnight – and instead takes years and years to cover the surface of a stone – the Japanese see something inherently virtuous about the plant. </p>
<p>Of course, there’s also the beauty of moss: vibrant colors that vary from bright green to brown, which richly complement the steely grays of stones, the red leaves of autumn and the soft pink of cherry blossoms. Many fans love to touch the plant’s sensual, soft surface. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104152/original/image-20151202-22439-lksj8i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The growth of moss: a gradual process that can take years.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-329761358/stock-photo-texture-of-stone-brick-wall-with-moss.html?src=Q3xbh1IlbJGHnhRxbfXj9A-1-81">'Bricks' via www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>Similar to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonsai">bonsai trees</a>, moss can be grown in the home. Because moss can be found almost anywhere in Japan, from street curbs to backyards, it’s easy to scrape some off, place it in a glass and <em>voila</em>: a clean, simple home decoration. Like cacti (a popular houseplant in the United States), moss is easy to care for, requiring little water to survive.</p>
<h2>Beauty in its imperfection</h2>
<p>The Japanese concept of <em>Wabi-sabi</em> also plays a key role in moss’s popularity. </p>
<p>Generally speaking, <em>Wabi-sabi</em> is an aesthetic that places a premium on qualities like impermanence, humility, asymmetry and imperfection. It’s the opposite of many Western aesthetic values, which include permanence, grandeur, symmetry and perfection (think of the <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Lincoln_memorial_at_night.jpg">Lincoln Memorial</a> or the <a href="http://www.britannica.com/art/Georgian-style">Georgian architecture style</a>, which originated in England). </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=771&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=771&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=771&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=969&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=969&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104931/original/image-20151208-32408-1qns6wd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=969&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A Japanese flower arrangement.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Ikebana_-_Yoshiko_Nakamura_01B.jpg">Joe Mabel/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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<p>For example, many Japanese prefer simple, stone-colored tea bowls to meticulously crafted china. In some cases, the bowls will assume <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Shino_chawan_MBA_Lyon_E554-146.jpg">an imperfect shape</a> and feature colors that might clash with Western sensibilities. </p>
<p>Japanese flower arrangements also assume a different flair. Compared to standard Western flower arrangements – which can include a vast array of tightly packed varieties – the art of Japanese flower arrangements (<em>Ikebana</em>) veers toward minimalist elegance: only a few plants, with the stems emphasized just as much as the blooms. </p>
<p>Even crops can be grown in tune with the ideals of <em>Wabi-sabi.</em> Many rice terraces are planted alongside the ridges of a mountain; they aren’t perfectly divided or shaped, nor is the mountain blasted away to create a flat surface. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=301&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=301&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=301&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/104925/original/image-20151208-32365-1v72422.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Japanese rice terraces – formed to adapt to the mountainous landscape – contrast with a symmetrical crop field in the United States.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-99025571/stock-photo-aerial-view-of-farmland-north-of-casa-grande.html?src=ItqdnD4SIhIBEeFGmbAvuA-1-43">'Crops,' via www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>To the Japanese, there’s a natural aspect to <em>Wabi-sabi</em> that’s considered beautiful. And moss is perhaps <em>Wabi-sabi</em>‘s standard bearer: it grows seemingly at random, in asymmetrical patterns. The humblest of plants, it’s often trampled upon, overshadowed by its larger, looming neighbors. </p>
<p>A closer look, however, reveals a world of intricate, vibrant fauna, a tangle of elegant and strange forms.</p>
<p><a href="http://ignition.co/398">In an essay</a>, Mosses, My Dear Friends author Hisako Fujii recalled the first time she fell for the plant, during a trip to Japan’s Yakushima Island:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Like an undisturbed treasure from another era, the moss seemed to be everywhere at once. It had completely covered the trees, the boulders, and even the ground, wrapping the entire forest in its luminous green fur… This, you might say, was the beginning of my love affair with moss.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>For the Japanese, it’s not a love affair that’s likely to fizzle in a few short years. Rather, like the plant itself, it’s of the enduring sort – the type that spans generations.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/50500/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In a country known for its eccentric tastes, is this simply another flash-in-the-pan fad?Mako Nozu, Senior Instructor of Japanese, University of South FloridaBrian Thompson, Instructor of Japanese, University of South FloridaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/444702015-07-10T04:31:01Z2015-07-10T04:31:01ZMosses and lichens come to the rescue in battle against air pollution<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/87889/original/image-20150709-10899-19boflc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Plants can play a role in revealing air pollution.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zikhona Ndlovu</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>We cannot avoid breathing in the air around us. When we breathe, tiny air pollutants such as toxic trace elements can penetrate and spread throughout our bodies. These pollutants can also be absorbed by our skin. Once inside, trace elements find their way into our <a href="https://www.teachengineering.org/view_activity.php?url=collection/cub_/activities/cub_biomed/cub_biomed_lesson04_activity1.xml">lungs</a> and enter our blood system. </p>
<p>We might not be able to see these harmful elements with the naked eye, but we can detect them by using plants as well as nuclear physics and related techniques.</p>
<p>There is a rising need for every country to monitor concentrations of pollutants in the air. But studies have focused mainly on classical ones like carbon monoxide. Heavy metals have not received the <a href="http://www.enviropaedia.com/topic/default.php?topic_id=13">attention</a> they deserve despite having been identified as the most <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Marina_Frontasyeva2/publication/234064477_Neutron_Activation_Analysis_in_the_Life_Sciences/links/0fcfd50ed1d2c82fb1000000.pdf">harmful</a> active air pollutants by the World Health Organisation.</p>
<p>But new scientific research is making headway into ways of tracking <a href="http://www.euro.who.int/_data/assets/pdf_file/0005/74732/E71922.pdf">less visible</a> air pollutants. A collaborative research initiative is using a simple method called <a href="http://coda-cerva.be/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=220&Itemid=214&lang=en">biomonitoring</a> to assess levels of toxic trace elements in the Western Cape area. We are using <a href="http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/mosses.html">mosses</a> and <a href="http://www.lichen.com/biology.html">lichens</a> as air filters. </p>
<p>Once the invisible toxic trace elements in air have been revealed, certain air quality standards can be enforced. Industry will be encouraged to invest in technologies that emit fewer pollutants. Moreover, people will be encouraged to find ways of reducing the air pollution emissions like unrestricted waste burning. </p>
<h2>Dangers of air pollution</h2>
<p>Air pollution can cause chronic diseases, degrade the environment and even destabilise economies. Vehicle emissions and industrial growth are the major causes of <a href="http://eschooltoday.com/pollution/air-pollution/causes-of-air-pollution.html">air pollution</a>. </p>
<p>At high concentrations, the effects of heavy metals in the air can lead to <a href="http://www.livescience.com/1853-pollution-40-percent-global-deaths.html">mortality</a>. The World Health Organisation has linked premature mortality and reduced life expectancy to air pollution <a href="http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2014/air-pollution/en/">exposure</a>. Air pollution also leads to <a href="http://www.air-quality.org.uk/15.php">forest decline</a> and loss in agricultural production.</p>
<p>Unfortunately air pollution is not always <a href="http://www.explainthatstuff.com/air-pollution-introduction.html">noticeable</a>. Heavy metals such as lead, cadmium and mercury carry the highest and most dangerous toxicity and can be found in clean-looking <a href="http://mg.co.za/article/2014-08-15-look-beyond-the-visible-air-pollution">air</a>. </p>
<h2>Why mosses and lichens</h2>
<p>What makes mosses and lichens especially suitable for studying air pollution is their underdeveloped root system. As a result they get their nutrients from the air through atmospheric dry and wet <a href="http://bryophytes.science.oregonstate.edu/page3.htm">depositions</a>.</p>
<p>Both mosses and lichens are non-vascular plants that act as <a href="http://gis.nacse.org/lichenair/index.php?page=literature">natural air filters</a> against toxic trace elements. They can be thought of as analogues to air filters. Their underdeveloped root system minimizes their contact with soil and so the amount of pollutants they get from the soil can be considered negligibly small. To survive they accumulate trace elements from atmosphere. In this way they are able to accumulate and retain air pollutants.</p>
<p>Mosses are green land plants with small leaf-like structures. Mosses lack some of the adaptations to dry environments that are found in the vascular plants and so are only able to grow and reproduce in wet environments. </p>
<p>Lichens are a complex life form that have an interdependent partnership with fungus and algea. Lichens do not have any roots, stems or leaves. They usually create disc-shaped structures and often have a grey or pale white appearance. </p>
<p>To identify the toxic trace elements in plants, we bombard them with neutrons, in a nuclear physics technique called neutron activation <a href="http://nmi3.eu/neutron-research/techniques-for-/chemical-analysis.html">analysis</a>. Once the accumulated trace elements in the plants absorb the bombarded neutrons, they become unstable. However, the trace elements prefer to exist on a less excited state which has energy higher than the absolute minimum also known as the ground state. Once they are radioactive, they de-excite by emitting high energy photons called <a href="http://www.livescience.com/50215-gamma-rays.html">gamma rays</a>. These help in identifying different elements in the sample.</p>
<p>Each element will give a gamma-ray of its own unique energy. Gamma-rays indicate the presence of a specific element in the sample under study. Gamma-rays are presented in a spectrum in a form of peaks at particular energies and the intensity of each peak is related to the concentration of that particular element. In that way, scientists can be able to identify an element in the sample as well how much of it is there. </p>
<p>Apart from just identifying the kinds of toxic pollutants available in air, it is also important to know how much of those pollutants are there. This is because the extent to which one is affected by air pollution depends on the length of exposure and the amount of pollution in the air.</p>
<p>That is where mosses and lichens are unique. Their air pollutant fighting capability can be used worldwide. </p>
<p>This is important because, on a larger scale, long term results of air pollution will affect the planet’s ability to sustain life. Fresh air, pure water and unpolluted earth are the basic needs for humanity to continue to <a href="http://www.etu.org.za/toolbox/docs/development/sustainable.html">exist</a>. Hence all living creatures have the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health and nations have a responsibility to keep the quality of air in a good state.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/44470/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Zikhona Ndlovu is affiliated with Stellenbosch University and iThemba LABS. She works as a Junior Research Scientist of iThemba LABS in Cape Town. For her PhD studies at Stellenbosch University, she has been receiving funding from Stellenbosch University and National Research Foundation.</span></em></p>Mosses and lichens have the ability to accumulate and retain air pollutants.Ntombizikhona Beaulah Ndlovu, PhD Student in Physics, Stellenbosch UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.