Andreaea frigida

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Icy Rock-moss
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Bryophyta Class: Andreaeopsida Subclass: Andreaeidae Order: Andreaeales Family: Andreaeaceae Genus: Andreaea Species: A. frigida
Binomial name
Andreaea frigida Hedwig.[1]

Andreaea frigida, commonly known as Icy Rock-moss, is a moss endemic to Europe which is found in mountainous regions in Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Rumania, Poland, and Spain.^[1][2] In the UK its occurrence is widespread in the Cairngorms National Park, where it its typically found on rocks in burns fed by snow patches, but it is not found elsewhere except at a single site in the Lake District of England.^[3][4]

The earliest records for the UK date to 1854, (although its existence was not formally recognised until 1988), and it is classified as "Vulnerable". The greatest threat to its continuing existence is assumed to be global warming.^[2]

[edit] See also

• Endemic Scottish moss species:
  • Bryoerythrophyllum caledonicum
  • Bryum dixonii
  • Pohlia scotica

• Flora of Scotland

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Andreaea frigida" ZipcodeZoo.com Retrieved 4 June 2008.
2. ^ ^{a b} "Species Action Plan: Icy Rock Moss (Andreaea frigida)" UK Biodiversity Action Plan. Retrieved 10 June 2008.
3. ^ Rothero, Gordon "Bryophytes", in Shaw, Philip and Thompson, Des (eds.) (2006) The Nature of the Cairngorms: Diversity in a changing environment. Edinburgh. The Stationery Office. ISBN 0114973261. p. 200.
4. ^ "Snow beds – Scotland’s Arctic" SNH. Retrieved 10 June 2008.