Acaulon fontiquerianum Casas & Sérgio

Melamed, Dror, Segarra-Moragues, José Gabriel, Puche, Felisa, Garcia, César A. & Sérgio, Cecília, 2021, On the synonymization of Acaulon longifolium Herrnst. & Heyn with Acaulon fontiquerianum Casas & Sérgio (Pottiaceae), Cryptogamie, Bryologie 20 (18), pp. 239-248 : 242-246

Acaulon fontiquerianum Casas & Sérgio

Cryptogamie, Bryologie, Lichénologie 11: 61 (1990).

TYPE. — Spain, Hispania, Cabo de Gata (Almería), Umbría del Cambronero, UTM 30 SWF 77, suelo al borde de Zizyphus lotus , 100 m a.s.l., C. Casas, 23.III.1972 (holo-, BCB [ BCB 24529]; iso-, PC [ PC 0026212], LISU [ LISU 153741]!, MUB [ MUB 3649], BM [ BM 000867535])

Acaulon longifolium Herrnst. & Heyn. , Nova Hedwigia 69: 229, (1999) syn. nov.

TYPE. — Sharon Plain, Pardess Hanna, Leg. Tuvia Kushnir, 21.III.1943 (holo-, HUJ [ HUJ 900407]; iso-, HUJ [ HUJ 900406]! dupl. VAL.- Briof. 12136, HUJ [ HUJ 900408]! dupl. VAL-Briof. 12406!).

MATERIALS STUDIED (* new records). — Israel. Pardes Hanna, in shade of Thymelaea hirsuta , 21.III.1943, T. Kushnir 117, formerly det. by Nachtmony as Acaulon muticum var. cuspidatum . Type locality, same collection of type. ( HUJ [ HUJ 900406], dupl. VAL-Briof.12136, isotype of A. longifolium ); ibidem, on sandy loam, 21.III.1943, T. Kushnir 214. Type locality, same collection of type. ( HUJ [ HUJ 900408], dupl. VAL-Briof. 12406, isotype of A. longifolium ); Philistean plain, Savyon, on partly exposed sandy loam, 15.II.1992, Herrnstadt s.n. ( HUJ [ HUJ 900405], dupl. VALBriof. 12137); ibidem, on sandy loam, partly exposed, 15.II.1992, Herrnstadt s.n. ( HUJ [ HUJ 903667], dupl. VAL-Briof. 12.407); ibidem, on partly exposed sandy loam, 15.II.1992, Herrnstadt s.n. ( HUJ [ HUJ 903663], dupl. VAL-Briof. 12408); *Sharon district, Ilanot Forest, on exposed sandy soil, 28. I.2020, D. Melamed s.n. (VAL-Briof. 12140).

Portugal. *Algarve, Cabo de São Vicente, 50-70 m, 29SNA004973, III.1984, C. Sérgio, M. Brugués, R. M. Cros, ( LISU 154915 sub. A. mediterraneum ); *Alto Alentejo, Campo Maior, Adega Mayor, 250 m, 29SPD647241, no solo da base de Olea , 13.IV.2019, C. Sérgio 16841 ( LISU 269141); *Estremadura, Setúbal, Alcochete, pr. Praia dos Moinhos, 3 m, 29 SNC 022886, solo de vegetação rasteira, halófita, arenoso e aluvião, ass. Pottia sp. Bryum spp. , Dicranella sp. , 01. I.2020, C. Sérgio 17180 ( LISU 269142); * ibidem, Serra da Arrábida, Vila Nogueira de Azeitão, Casais de Portela, 140 m. 38°29’35.98”N, 9°02’23.22”W, no caminho e solo no prado semi-natural junto à estrada, ass. Microbryum sp. e Dicranella howei , 25. I.2020, C. Sérgio 17204 ( LISU 269143, dupl. VAL-Briof. 11875); *Ribatejo, Santarém, Caneiras, 19 m, 39.20135°W 8.68425, in sedimentary soil, open grassland with natural vegetation, associated to Bryum capillare , Riccia sorocarpa , Barbula convoluta , Pleurochaete squarrosa , 05. I.2020, C. Garcia s.n. ( LISU 269140).

Spain. Almería, Cabo de Gata, Umbría del Cambronero, 100 m, 30 SWF 77, suelo al borde de Zizyphus lotus , 23.III.1972, C. Casas ( LISU 153741, isotype of A. fontiquerianum ). Valencia, Estivella, Puntal de l’Abella, 560 m, 39°41’42.41”N, 0°22’57.41”W, on sandy soil, 01.II.2019, J. G. Segarra Moragues & F. Puche s.n. (VAL-Briof. 11873); ibidem, Albalat dels Tarongers, Cerro del Cavall, 200 m, 39°38’49.23”N, 0°21’56.62”W, on sandy soil, 26. I.2017, J. G. Segarra Moragues & F. Puche s.n. (VAL-Briof. 11874); ibidem, Marines Viejo, matorral y campos de algarrobos junto al rio, 410 m, 39°44’12.31”N, 0°31’59.27”W, on soil, 18.II.2015, J. G. Segarra Moragues s.n. (VAL-Briof. 11274); Valencia, Sagunto, Monte Picayo, 300 m, 39°38’29.13”N, 0°19’10.38”W, on sandy soil, 22.III.2007, F. Puche s.n. (VAL-Briof. 7456).

DESCRIPTION

An updated description of A. fontiquerianum , integrating the morphological variation from A. longifolium specimens studied is presented here:

Plants gregarious, bulbiform, light green becoming light brown with age, to 3.0 mm high including the leaf aristae; leaves 6-13 per plant, imbricate, incurved, oblong-ovate, concave, (1.2-)1.8(-2.4) × (0.-)0.8(-1.5) mm, outher leaves smaller, margins entire, recurved near the apex; leaf apex acute. Nerve excurrent in a concolorous, flexuose arista (113.2-)234.8(-406.9) µm long, in cross section with abaxial stereids in 2-3 rows; euricists absent, 1-2 hydroids sometimes present; adaxial surface of the nerve with (2-)4(-5) rows of smooth, inflated, (11.3-)17.3(-28.1) × (9.7-)16.1(-25.7) µm, cells, with cell walls thinner than those of cells from lamina.

Cells of lamina smooth, in cross-section with abaxial walls thicker than adaxial ones; basal cells rectangular (45.8-)70.1 (-108.1) × (11.7-)19.9(-32.7) µm; median cells, rectangular, subquadrate, polygonal to rhomboidal, (12.6-)21.2(-35.9) × (8.7-)14.6(-23.5) µm.

Paroicous, dioicous, autoicous or rhizautoicous. Seta straight, (85.7-)175.2(-334.3) µm. Capsule brown, subspherical to obovoid, cleistocarpous, (424.3-)657.0(-988.0) × (345.0-)574.0(-881.75) µm, shortly apiculate. Calyptra conical, mitrate, to 634.7 × 343.7 µm. Spores orange to brownish, rounded in shape, (19.1-)23.2(-27.5) × (15.2-) 21.1(-31.1) µm, finely granulose at LM. Spore ornamentation at SEM densely baculate, baculae acute to brancheddentate distally; spores with 1-2 lamellar glomeruli with dentate-spinose margins.

HABITAT, ECOLOGY AND DISTRIBUTION

Species of Acaulon are common elements of bryophyte communities growing on bare, often disturbed, soil with seasonal fluctuation of soil humidity. In such situations they are usually associated with many other ephemeral Pottiaceae , Bryaceae and Ricciaceae . Throughout its distribution range A. fontiquerianum has been reported from a variety of soil types ( Sérgio et al. 1993), including volcanic, granitic, sandy and red clay (terra rossa), generally characterized by neutral to acidic pH. It also spans a large altitudinal range from almost sea level (Cogoni & Scrugli 2000) to 2100 m a.s.l. ( Kirmaci & Erdağ 2014); however, the majority of the populations occur at low to moderate altitudes <100-1000 m a.s.l., and not far from the sea coast. In Israel, three out of the five locations where this species has been collected occur in areas as low as 45-55 m a.s.l. and at 5-10 km distance from the Mediterranean shore, and one (Jerusalem) at about 700 m a.s.l (D. Melamed, personal observation). Regarding the new population from the Ilanot Forest, a plantation of Eucalyptus sp. , the plants were growing on exposed wet sandy soil, together with Microbryum sp. and Tortula acaulon (With.) R.H. Zander.

Acaulon fontiquerianum has been confirmed previously from five Mediterranean countries ( Fig. 4 ): France, including Corsica ( Sérgio et al. 1993), Italian islands of Sardinia (Cogoni & Scrugli 2000) and Sicily ( Lo Giudice 1995); Portugal ( Sérgio et al. 1993, 2013, plus five additional populations newly reported in this study), Spain (Casas & Sérgio 1990; Casas et al. 1990; García-Zamora et al. 1998, 1999; Guerra et al. 2010; Ros & Werner 2010; SegarraMoragues & Puche 2016; Brugués et al. 2018), including the Canary Islands (Dirkse et al. 1993) and Turkey ( Kirmaci & Erdağ 2014; Ağcagil et al. 2020). A previous report from Morocco by (Cano et al. 2002) needs confirmation, as it was based on immature specimens – however, the plants show the characteristic inflated cells of A. fontiquerianum on the adaxial side of the nerve supporting its possible occurrence in North Africa (Cano et al. 2002). In conclusion, the results from this study, based on the taxonomic reassessment of previous records and a recent collection of A. longifolium

-3 Factor 1 (19.53%)

(Herrnstadt & Heyn 1999; Herrnstadt et al. 2005), extend the distribution of A. fontequerianum to Israel.

Figures

FIG. 4. — Known world distribution of Acaulon fontiquerianum Casas & Sérgio based on published records and herbarium specimens.Black dots indicate populations initially ascribed to A.fontiquerianum; a grey square indicates an unconfirmed Moroccan population of this species.Populations initially adscribed to A. longifolium Herrnst. & Heyn. and the new population are represented with black and grey triangles, respectively. Latitude and longitude numbers are indicated in degrees.