Introductory
SPECIES: Hylocomium splendens  | Mountain-Fern Moss 



ABBREVIATION : 
HYLSPL

SYNONYMS : 
NO-ENTRY


SCS PLANT CODE : 
NO-ENTRY


COMMON NAMES : 
   mountain fern moss
   stair-step moss
   feather moss
   step moss


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name for mountain fern moss is
Hylocomium splendens (Hedw.) B.S.G.  There are no recognized subspecies,
varieties, or forms [9,14,16].


LIFE FORM : 
Bryophyte

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
No special status

OTHER STATUS : 
NO-ENTRY


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
Julie L. Tesky, July 1992.


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
NO-ENTRY


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Tesky, Julie L. 1992. Hylocomium splendens.  In: Remainder of Citation

DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Hylocomium splendens  | Mountain-Fern Moss 



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
Mountain fern moss occurs from Greenland to Alaska, south to North
Carolina, and west to Oregon and California.  It also occurs in the West
Indies, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand [9,14,16].


ECOSYSTEMS : 
   FRES10  White - red - jack pine
   FRES11  Spruce - fir
   FRES18  Maple - beech - birch
   FRES19  Aspen - birch
   FRES20  Douglas-fir
   FRES22  Western white pine
   FRES23  Fir - spruce
   FRES24  Hemlock - Sitka spruce
   FRES25  Larch
   FRES26  Lodgepole pine
   FRES44  Alpine


STATES : 
     AK  AZ  CA  CO  CT  DE  ID  IL  IN  IA
     KY  ME  MD  MA  MI  MN  MT  NH  NJ  NY
     NC  ND  OH  OR  PA  RI  SD  UT  VT  VA
     WA  WV  WI  WY  AB  BC  MB  NB  NF  NT
     NS  ON  PE  PQ  SK  YT


ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS : 
NO-ENTRY


BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
    1  Northern Pacific Border
    2  Cascade Mountains
    3  Southern Pacific Border
    4  Sierra Mountains
    5  Columbia Plateau
    6  Upper Basin and Range
    8  Northern Rocky Mountains
    9  Middle Rocky Mountains
   11  Southern Rocky Mountains
   12  Colorado Plateau
   13  Rocky Mountain Piedmont
   15  Black Hills Uplift
   16  Upper Missouri Basin and Broken Lands


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K001  Spruce - cedar - hemlock forest
   K002  Cedar - hemlock - Douglas-fir forest
   K003  Silver fir - Douglas-fir forest
   K004  Fir - hemlock forest
   K005  Mixed conifer forest
   K008  Lodgepole pine - subalpine forest
   K013  Cedar - hemlock - pine forest
   K014  Grand fir - Douglas-fir forest
   K015  Western spruce - fir forest
   K020  Spruce - fir - Douglas-fir forest
   K021  Southwestern spruce - fir forest
   K093  Great Lakes spruce - fir forest
   K094  Conifer bog
   K096  Northeastern spruce - fir forest
   K097  Southeastern spruce - fir forest
   K107  Northern hardwoods - fir forest
   K108  Northern hardwoods - spruce forest


SAF COVER TYPES : 
     1  Jack pine
     5  Balsam fir
    12  Black spruce
    13  Black spruce - tamarack
    18  Paper birch
    24  Hemlock - yellow birch
    30  Red spruce - yellow birch
    31  Red spruce - sugar maple - beech
    32  Red spruce
    33  Red spruce - balsam fir
    34  Red spruce - Fraser fir
    35  Paper birch - red spruce - balsam fir
    37  Northern white-cedar
    38  Tamarack
   107  White spruce
   201  White spruce
   202  White spruce - paper birch
   204  Black spruce
   205  Mountain hemlock
   206  Engelmann spruce - subalpine fir
   218  Lodgepole pine
   223  Sitka spruce
   224  Western hemlock
   225  Western hemlock - Sitka spruce
   226  Coastal true fir - hemlock
   251  White spruce - aspen
   253  Black spruce - white spruce
   254  Black spruce -  paper birch
   256  California mixed subalpine


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
Mountain fern moss is often an indicator of stable, late stages of
succession stands dominated by white spruce (Picea glauca) or black
spruce (P. mariana) [17].  Publications listing mountain fern moss as a
dominant ground cover are as follows:

Field guide to forest ecosystems of west-central Alberta [10].
Flood-plain succession and vegetation classification in interior Alaska [29].
Some forest types of central Newfoundland and their relation to
  environmental factors [35].
A review of forest site classification acitivities in Newfoundland and
   Labrador [36].
A preliminary classification system for vegetation of Alaska [31].

VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Hylocomium splendens  | Mountain-Fern Moss 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Mountain fern moss is occasionally eaten by deer and caribou [15,22].


PALATABILITY : 
NO-ENTRY


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 



COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
NO-ENTRY


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
In the past mountain fern moss has been used for covering dirt floors
and lining fruit and vegetable storage boxes [25].  Mountain fern moss
is still used for chinking log structures in Alaska.  The wet moss is
pressed into cracks between logs using a wooden chisel.  When the moss
is dry, it remains compressed and stays green for the life of the cabin.
In many ways it is preferable to modern material [21].  Mountain fern
moss is used by florists to form banks of green in show windows [6].

Mountain fern moss is used in locating pollution sources and determining
levels of pollution of heavy metals in the environment [3].  Mountain
fern moss absorbs metals over its entire surface and is little
influenced by variations in substrate mineralization.  Close to the
source, this moss accumulates high levels of metals [25].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
It has been shown that tree canopy removal will kill mountain fern moss,
but removal of only the shrub canopy has a less severe effect [7].
Mountain fern moss growth is better in undisturbed areas than in
disturbed areas.  Moss growth is so closely balanced with its
microclimate that even the removal of a rather open shrub layer can have
a measurable effect on growth rates [7].

BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Hylocomium splendens  | Mountain-Fern Moss 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Mountain fern moss is a perennial, relatively large, robust moss,
occurring in wide loose patches, and often forming mats [8,14].  Stems
are 3.9 to 5.9 inches (10-15 cm) in length.  Mountain fern moss has
tiny, long, filamentous rhizoids that can transport soil water
remarkably long vertical distances to green surface tissues [23].  The
average life span of this moss is 8 years [5].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
NO-ENTRY


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Sexual reproduction:  Mountain fern moss reproduces sexually by spores.
These spores are wind dispersed.  The period for gametangicel (structure
containing the gametes) development for mountain fern moss is 11 months
[34].

Vegetative reproduction:  Mountain fern moss reproduces vegetatively by
branching laterally.  A new, readily identifiable segment is produced
each year arising from the stems of the previous year's growth in a
layered or steplike fashion [7,16].  In mountain fern moss, the bud
which will develop into the following year's growth layer is formed at
the same time that the lateral branches are initiated in the current
year's layer, but further development is somehow delayed.  The buds do
not start to elongate until the previous segment has completed its
growth [7].  Cold treatment is not required for further development, as
buds show normal development in material brought into a growth chamber
later in the season and kept at temperatures above freezing.
Photoperiod also seems not to be a factor.  A small proportion of buds
showed some elongation in late September and October, whereas
development in the field does not usually take place until the following
May or June [7].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Mountain fern moss is abundant and often dominant in coniferous forests
on water-shedding and water-receiving sites [18].  On such sites, this
moss often develops a mat layer that may be 7.9 to 11.8 inches (20-30
cm) thick [28].  Mountain fern moss also occurs on ledges, humus and
decaying wood in cool, moist ravines and mountain woods from sea level
to 10,000 feet (0-3,048 m) [14].  This moss is a common moss on dune
pastures in Scotland [25].

Mountain fern moss is restricted to areas sheltered by trees and shrubs
[7].  It requires shade, moderate water levels, and high nutrient
levels.  It is not rooted in the substrate and is nearly independent of
the substrate's nutrient and water supply.  Growth is controlled by
rainfall frequency and degree of protection from evaporation stress [7].
This moss quickly dries up when the canopy cover is not adequate to
prevent high evaporation [17].  Growth rates are highest in habitats
protected from evaporation stress, and survival is enhanced in shaded
habitats or in environments with high humidity and consistent cloud
cover [7].

Mountain fern moss is typically found associated with the following
understory species:  salal (Gaultheria shallon), pachystima (Pachystima
myrsinites), Shreber's moss (Pleurozium schreberi), Rhytidiadelphus
boreus, big huckleberry (Vaccinium membranaceum), and red huckleberry
(V. parvifolium) [18].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Obligate Climax Species 

Mountain fern moss typically occurs in stable late stages of succession.
It is very shade tolerant [7,18,27].  It will replace the
shade-intolerant lichens and often becomes the dominant ground cover in
late seral to climax stands of white spruce and black spruce [17,28,31].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
The beginning of blooming in mosses is considered to occur when one or
two archegonia (female gametophyte) open.  In Hernoesand, Sweden,
mountain fern moss first bloomed in July.  The gametangicel developed in
May or June of the following year.  In Germany, mountain fern moss first
bloomed in May or June and the gametangicel developed in February or May
of the following year [2].  Growth of the previous year's layer is
usually resumed in early May to mid-June.  In boreal forests, growth
rates were high in May, June, and August; growth slowed in October.
There appears to be little if any growth activity over the winter months
in high-altitude regions [7].

FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Hylocomium splendens  | Mountain-Fern Moss 



FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS : 
Mountain fern moss is not well adapted to fire.  It typically occurs in
wet stands of white or black spruce that have a fire regime of 200 to
400 years [31].  When they do burn, the moss/lichen layer provides the
major carrier fuels.  These fuels take only minutes to reach equilibrium
moisture content when the relative humidity changes; therefore, they are
very flammable [23].


POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY : 
NO-ENTRY

FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Hylocomium splendens  | Mountain-Fern Moss 



IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : 
Mountain fern moss is generally killed by fire, although small patches
may survive low-severity fire [31].  Some moss species on burned areas
can survive as fragments in the soil [1].


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : 
Mountain fern moss takes many years to recover following fire.  Although
small patches may survive fire, it is not until a closed or nearly
closed canopy is established that mountain fern moss can spread and
become the dominant ground cover [31].  Ten to thirty years after fire,
mountain fern moss will replace the early successional mosses and
liverworts.  In mesic, high-nutrient habitats, mountain fern moss
generally appears 30 to 50 years after fire and quickly becomes the most
abundant ground cover [17].  However, in Finland, mountain fern moss
began appearing 10 years after fire.  Recovery was slow and 50 years
after fire, this moss still had not reached preburn levels [1].


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : 
NO-ENTRY


FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
NO-ENTRY

References for species: Hylocomium splendens

1. Ahlgren, C. E. 1974. Effects of fire on temperate forests: north central United States. In: Kozlowski, T. T.; Ahlgren, C. E., eds. Fire and ecosystems. New York: Academic Press: 195-223. [7198]

2. Arnell, H. W. 1905. Phaenological observations of mosses. Bryologist. 8: 41-44. [18664]

3. Barclay-Estrup, P.; Rinne, R. J. K. 1978. Lead and zinc accumulation in two feather mosses. Oikos. 30(1): 106-108. [18665]

4. Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals, reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p. [434]

5. Binkley, Dan; Graham, Rob. 1981. Biomass, production, and nutrient cycling of mosses in an old-growth Douglas-fir forest. Ecology. 62(5): 1387-1389. [8177]

6. Bland, John H. 1971. Forests of Lilliput. The realm of mosses and lichens. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc. 210 p. [18663]

7. Busby, J. R.; Bliss, L. C.; Hamilton, C. D. 1978. Microclimate control of growth rates and habitats of the boreal forest mosses, Tomenthypnum nitens and Hylocomium splendens. Ecological Monographs. 48(2): 95-110. [18666]

8. Chapman, Clara J.; Sanborn, Ethel I. 1941. Moss flora of the Willamette Valley, Oregon. Oregon State Monographs. Studies in Botany No. 4. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University. 72 p. [18661]

9. Conard, Henry S. 1956. How to know the mosses and liverworts. Dubuque, IA: Wm.C. Brown Company Publishers. 226 p. [9927]

10. Corns, I. G. W.; Annas, R. M. 1986. Field guide to forest ecosystems of west-central Alberta. Edmonton, AB: Canadian Forestry Service, Northern Forestry Centre. 251 p. [8998]

11. Evans, Kevin E.; Kershaw, G. Peter. 1989. Prod. of agronomic & native plants under various fertil & seed applicat rates on a simulated transport corridor, Ft. Norman, Northwest Terr.. In: Walker, D. G.; Powter, C. B.; Pole, M. W., compilers. Reclamation, a global perspective: Proceedings of the conference; 1989 August 27-31; Calgary, AB. Edmonton, AB: Alberta Land Conservation and Reclamation Council: 279-287. [14352]

12. Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p. [905]

13. Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others]. 1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p. [998]

14. Grout, A. J. 1932. Moss flora of North America, north of Mexico. Vol. 3. Part 3. New York: The author. 277 p. [18657]

15. Hanley, Thomas A.; Robbins, Charles T.; Spalinger, Donald E. 1989. Forest habitats and the nutritional ecology of Sitka black-tailed deer: a research synthesis with implications for forest management. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-230. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 52 p. [7509]

16. Ireland, R. R. 1982. Moss flora of the Maritime Provinces. Publications in Botany No. 13. [Ottawa, ON]: National Museum of Natural Sciences. 738 p. [18662]

17. Johnson, E. A. 1981. Vegetation organization and dynamics of lichen woodland communities in the Northwest Territories, Canada. Ecology. 62(1): 200-215. [19244]

18. Klinka, K.; Krajina, V. J.; Ceska, A.; Scagel, A. M. 1989. Indicator plants of coastal British Columbia. Vancouver, BC: University of British Columbia Press. 288 p. [10703]

19. Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York: American Geographical Society. 77 p. [1384]

20. Lesquereux, Leo; James, Thomas P. 1884. Manual of the mosses of North America. Boston, MA: S.E. Cassino & Co. 447 p. [18656]

21. Lewis, M. 1981. Human uses of bryophytes. I. Use of mosses for chinking log structures in Alaska. Bryologist. 84(4): 571-572. [18659]

22. Miller, Donald R. 1976. Taiga winter range relationships and diet. Canadian Wildlife Service Rep. Series No. 36. Ottawa, ON: Environment Canada, Wildlife Service. 42 p. (Biology of the Kaminuriak population of barren-ground caribou; pt 3) [13007]

23. Norum, Rodney A. 1982. Predicting wildfire behavior in black spruce forests in Alaska. Res. Note PNW-401. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Fire, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 10 p. [10463]

24. Norum, Rodney A. 1983. Wind adjustment factors for predicting fire behavior in three fuel types in Alaska. Res. Pap. PNW-309. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 5 p. [14618]

25. Richardson, D. H. 1981. The biology of mosses. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific Publications. 220 p. [18658]

26. Stanek, Walter. 1980. Vegetation types and environmental factors associated with Foothills Gas Pipeline route, Yukon Territory. BC-X-205. Victoria, BC: Environment Canada, Canadian Forestry Service, Pacific Forest Research Centre. 48 p. [16527]

27. Tamm, C. O. 1964. Growth of Hylocomium splendens in relation to tree canopy. Bryologist. 67: 423-426. [18660]

28. Viereck, Leslie A. 1970. Forest succession and soil development adjacent to the Chena River in interior Alaska. Arctic and Alpine Research. 2(1): 1-26. [12466]

29. Viereck, Leslie A. 1989. Flood-plain succession and vegetation classification in interior Alaska. In: Ferguson, Dennis E.; Morgan, Penelope; Johnson, Frederic D., compilers. Proceedings--land classifications based on vegetation: applications for resource management; 1987 November 17-19; Moscow, ID. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-257. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station: 197-203. [6959]

30. Viereck, L. A.; Dyrness, C. T. 1979. Ecological effects of the Wickersham Dome Fire near Fairbanks, Alaska. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-90. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 71 p. [6392]

31. Viereck, L. A.; Dyrness, C. T.; Batten, A. R.; Wenzlick, K. J. 1992. The Alaska vegetation classification. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-286. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 278 p. [2431]

32. Viereck, Leslie A.; Schandelmeier, Linda A. 1980. Effects of fire in Alaska and adjacent Canada--a literature review. BLM-Alaska Tech. Rep. 6. Anchorage, AK: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Mangement, Alaska State Office. 124 p. [7075]

33. Foote, M. Joan. 1983. Classification, description, and dynamics of plant communities after fire in the taiga of interior Alaska. Res. Pap. PNW-307. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 108 p. [7080]

34. Longton, R. E.; Greene, S. W. 1969. The growth and reproductive cycle of Pleurozium scriberi (Brid.) Mitt. Annals of Botany. 33: 83-105. [28340]

35. Damman, A. W. H. 1964. Some forest types of central Newfoundland and their relation to environmental factors. Forest Science Monograph 8. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 62 p. [14281]

36. Meades, W. J.; Roberts, B. A. 1992. A review of forest site classification activities in Newfoundland and Labrador. Forestry Chronicle. 68(1): 25-33. [19262]

Related categories for Species: Hylocomium splendens | Mountain-Fern Moss