Zygodon forsteri (Dicks.) Mitt.

Hugonnot, Vincent, 2019, New records for the bryophyte flora of Corsica, Cryptogamie, Bryologie 20 (14), pp. 153-158 : 157

Zygodon forsteri (Dicks.) Mitt.

SPECIMEN EXAMINED. — France. Haute-Corse, Saliceto, Monte San Petrone, on Fagus sylvatica , 2.V.2017, 1380 m a.s.l., V. Hugonnot s.n.

Remarks

It grew on the bark of medium-age Fagus sylvatica individuals (Beechwood) in grazed Poo balbisii-Fagetum sylvaticae Gamisans (1977) 1979 association. Here, the species thrives only at the margins of dripping cavities (dendrotelms) of natural origin. Only two cavities bearing Z. forsteri could be spotted in spite of targeted research and innumerable available cavities. Sporophytes full of mature spores could be seen at one of the cavities. Abundant propaguliferous protonemata with immature gametophores were colonizing the other cavity. The species was reported to grow in dendrotelm in the Mediterranean basin, however, it generally favours Quercus phorophytes and is only casually observed on Fagus in the Mediterranean ( Hugonnot 2010).

Zygodon forsteri is a Suboceanic-southern-Temperate element ( Blockeel et al. 2014). It is known from western, central and southern Europe, northern Africa and south-western Asia ( Ros et al. 2013; Hodgetts 2015). In the Mediterranean Region its distribution includes Madeira in Macaronesia; Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Portugal, Sardinia, Serbia, Sicily, Slovenia and Spain in southern Europe; Algeria and Morocco in northern Africa; and Turkey in south-western Asia ( Blockeel et al. 2009; Ros et al. 2013). In Mediterranean France, numerous localities were recorded in all the Departments (Pyrénées-Orientales, Aude, Hérault, Tarn, Averyon, Lozère, Gard, Ardèche, Vaucluse, Drôme, Bouche-du-Rhône, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Var, Alpes-Maritimes) ( Hugonnot 2010).