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Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

2014

Bryophytes

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Dominating The Antarctic Environment: Bryophytes In A Time Of Change, Jessica Bramley-Alves, Diana H. King, Sharon A. Robinson, Rebecca E. Miller Jan 2014

Dominating The Antarctic Environment: Bryophytes In A Time Of Change, Jessica Bramley-Alves, Diana H. King, Sharon A. Robinson, Rebecca E. Miller

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Polar ecosystems, and particularly Antarctica, are one of the few environs in which bryophytes dominate the flora. Their success in these regions is due to bryophytes’ ability to withstand an array of harsh conditions through their poikilohydric lifestyle. However, the unique conditions that allow bryophytes to proliferate over other forms of vegetation also create considerable limitations to growth and photosynthetic activity. High latitude areas are already experiencing some of the most pronounced and rapid climatic change, especially in the Arctic, the Sub-Antarctic Islands and Maritime Antarctica, and these are predicted to continue over the next century. This climatic change is …


Sunsafe Bryophytes: Photoprotection From Excess And Damaging Solar Radiation, Sharon A. Robinson, Melinda J. Waterman Jan 2014

Sunsafe Bryophytes: Photoprotection From Excess And Damaging Solar Radiation, Sharon A. Robinson, Melinda J. Waterman

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Whilst light is essential for photosynthesis and development of plants, both excess photosynthetically active radiation and certain wavelengths (e.g. high energy ultraviolet-B) radiation can be damaging. Plants in general possess a suite of mechanisms that act to either prevent absorption of damaging and excess radiation or to mitigate against the damage that such radiation can cause once it is absorbed. Whilst bryophytes share many of these photoprotective mechanisms with the vascular plants, there are key differences in the photoprotection available to bryophytes. Some of these differences pertain to structural features, such as protective epidermal layers, that are available to vascular …