Diversity of Epiphytic Mosses (Bryophyta) in Forests of Polylepis (Rosaceae) in the Urubamba Mountain Range, Cusco, Peru

Abstract

The diversity of mosses was evaluated in four Polylepis (Rosaceae) forests in the Cordillera del Urubamba, Cusco region – Peru. Epiphytic mosses were collected from the lower base of the trunk, canopy area, and terminal branches in paper bags, selecting specimens with sporophytes. Twenty-seven species distributed in seven orders, 13 families, and 17 genera were determined. Three species are new records for Peru, that is, Neckera ehrenbergii, Zygodon quitensis, and Didymodon challaense. Fourteen species are reported for the first time in the Cusco region. These chorological novelties demonstrate the importance of Polylepis forests as stores of cryptogamic diversity.