OOS 30 - Moss Ecology in a Changing World

Organizer(s)

• SI

  Sarah Ishak

  Université de Sherbrooke, Canada

Co-Organizer(s)

• IL

  Isabelle Laforest-Lapointe

  Principal Investigator
  Université de Sherbrooke, Canada

Moderator(s)

• MJ

  Mélanie Jean

  Université de Moncton, Canada

Mosses, far from being forest floor carpets, can have various effects on terrestrial ecosystems. Mosses from northern boreal ecosystems, for example, play a major role in nitrogen and carbon cycling, contributing up to 50% of total forest productivity. On the other hand, mosses from dryland ecosystems can impact soil physiochemical properties. Furthermore, mosses are sensitive to environmental factors such as light exposure and moisture, presence of leaf litter, and even presence of heavy metals. Thus, they have long been used as measures of ecosystem health. Unfortunately, there are still many gaps in our understanding of moss ecology and ecophysiology in relation to environmental factors. Particularly in an era where ecosystems are being impacted by various climatic disturbances, understanding the relationship between the environment and mosses can potentially inform us about the impacts climate change will have on ecosystem function via mosses. As such, the objective of this session is to bring together researchers that have investigated moss communities in the boreal forests of Canada, as well as the arid drylands of northern Arizona and collections of mosses from all across Europe in order to incorporate global datasets on the effects of climate change on moss ecology. Each presentation will provide threads of information, from projecting moss dispersal rates, to moss chemical activities and even moss-microbe interactions, weaving together an understanding of moss ecology in a changing climate.

Presentations:

• 1:30 PM – 1:45 PM EDT

  Microbiomes and Mosses – Exploring the ecosystem functions of the moss microbiome from boreal Québec and Alaska
  

  Presenting Author: Sarah Ishak – Université de Sherbrooke

  Co-author: Isabelle Laforest-Lapointe – Université de Sherbrooke
• 1:45 PM – 2:00 PM EDT

  Dominance of coniferous and broadleaved trees shape bacterial associations with boreal feather mosses
  

  Presenting Author: Juanita Carolina Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Forest Research Institute – University Of Quebec In Abitibi Temiscamingue

  Co-author: Juanita Carolina Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Forest Research Institute – University Of Quebec In Abitibi Temiscamingue

  Co-author: Yves Bergeron, Forest Research Institute – Forest Research Institute, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue

  Co-author: Steven W. Kembel – Université du Québec à Montréal

  Co-author: Nicole J. Fenton, Forest Research Institute – Université du Québec en Abitibi Témiscamingue
• 2:00 PM – 2:15 PM EDT

  Predicting bryophytes response to climate change: ecological niche models and spore dispersal simulations
  

  Presenting Author: Florian Zanatta – Meise Botanic Garden / lacYme

  Co-author: Alain Vanderpoorten – University of Liège

  Co-author: Flavien Collart – University of Lausanne

  Co-author: Antoine Guisan – University of Lausanne

  Co-author: Robin Engler – Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics

  Co-author: Olivier Broennimann – University of Lausanne
• 2:15 PM – 2:30 PM EDT

  Tundra moss transplants reveal host species-specific response of associated N2 fixation rates to environmental change
  

  Presenting Author: Julia E.M. Stuart – MIchigan Technological University

  Co-author: Michelle C. Mack – Northern Arizona University
• 2:30 PM – 2:45 PM EDT

  Unraveling the environmental drivers of the feather moss bacteriome and its nitrogen fixation in the Canadian boreal forest
  

  Co-author: Marie Renaudin – Université de Sherbrooke

  Presenting Author: Isabelle Laforest-Lapointe – Université de Sherbrooke

  Co-author: Robert Bradley – Université de Sherbrooke

  Co-author: Jean-Philippe Bellenger – Universite de Sherbrooke
• 2:45 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

  Prolonged experimental drought affects morphological traits in dryland moss Syntrichia caninervis
  

  Presenting Author: María Rengifo-Faiffer – Northern Arizona University

  Co-author: Matthew A. Bowker – Northern Arizona University

  Co-author: Anita J. Antoninka, PhD – School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University