Alkaline wing-nerved moss (Pterygoneurum kozlovii) assessment and status report: chapter 8
Biology
Pterygoneurum kozlovii is a small, acrocarpous moss that usually grows on soil in small to medium sized patches or turfs along the edges of seasonally wet, alkaline areas in semi-arid shrub-steppe and grassland environments.
Sporophytes and spores are common in Canadian populations (Figure 1). Spores are probably important in maintaining populations, and in the dispersal of this species, at least into adjacent open areas. However, the spores of this species are relatively large, and probably do not readily disseminate beyond a short distance. The immersed capsules may also restrict dispersal to some degree, but this is unknown; they may also afford protection for the spores during the summer dry period. Spores may be dispersed by surficial water flows, insects, and birds. Pterygoneurum kozlovii should probably be considered a perennial species because of the presence of the small bulbils on the rhizoids, and because it has been found in some sites in the same location as earlier years. Vegetative growth is probably important in maintaining the population or in expanding it over short distances.
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