Bryophytes were a pivotal step in land plant evolution, and their significance in the regulation of ecosystems and the conservation of biodiversity is becoming increasingly acknowledged. This introductory textbook assumes no prior knowledge of bryophyte biology, making it ideal for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, as well as amateur botanists. The authors expertly summarise the diversity of bryophytes and outline recent advances in our understanding of their evolutionary history, their ecological roles and preferences, their distribution patterns and conservation needs. The text is highly illustrated throughout, with boxed summaries of topics of current relevance in bryophyte biology, and a glossary of technical terms.
- Boxed essays summarise topics of current relevance in bryophyte biology
- Gives a modern perspective on bryophyte systematics with chapters on conservation, pollution, and evolution
- Provides a bridge to the more advanced treatment given in Goffinet and Shaw's Bryophyte Biology (2nd edition, 2008, Cambridge University Press)
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Product details
- Date Published: May 2009
- format: Paperback
- isbn: 9780521700733
- length: 328 pages
- dimensions: 248 x 175 x 16 mm
- weight: 0.65kg
- contains: 82 b/w illus. 16 colour illus.
- availability: Available
Table of Contents
Preface
1. Evolutionary significance of bryophytes
2. Ecological significance of bryophytes
3. Liverworts
4. Mosses
5. Hornworts
6. Biogeography of bryophytes
7. Ecology of bryophytes
8. Physiological ecology of bryophytes
9. Bryophytes in a changing world
10. Conservation biology of bryophytes
Glossary
References
Index.
Look Inside
Instructors have used or reviewed this title for the following courses
- Biology of Mosses
- Bryology
- Introduction to Bryophytes
- Non-vascular Plant Morphology
Authors
Alain Vanderpoorten, Université de Liège, Belgium
Alain Vanderpoorten is a Research Associate of the Belgian Funds for Scientific Research at the University of Liège, Belgium, where he teaches molecular systematics, biogeography, and landscape ecology. His research presently focuses on the evolution of endemism.
Bernard Goffinet, University of Connecticut
Bernard Goffinet is an Associate Professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Connecticut. His current research spans chloroplast genome evolution in liverworts, the phylogenetic history of mosses, and the systematics of lichen-forming fungi. He teaches bryophyte and lichen biology and green plant evolution.