Calcicole and Calcifuge

Bryophytes

Submitted to: Submitted by:

Prof. Dr. Sunita kapila Aditi Godara (Roll no. 3)
Dept. of Botany, PU Norbu Dolma (Roll no.26)
 CALCIFUGES
• Calcifuges are calcium hating bryophytes
• Calcifuges lives on substrata with acid reaction
or in soft waters
• Examples:
1. Andreaea rothii
2. Dicranoweisia cirrata
3. Grimmia donniana
4. Ptychomitrium polyphyllum
5. Racomitrium fasciculare
6. Racomitrium lanuginosum
Andreaea rothii
Grimmia donniana
Racomitrium lanuginosum
• Calcifuges are the bryophytes that
usually grow on a pH of 5 or less and
cannot tolerate high alkalinity or presence
of excessive level of Ca2+ in the soil.
Presence of Ca2+ is scathel to them.

• Calcifuges does not tolerate alkaline soil

but it is not because of the presence of
OH- but, the fact is that under alkaline
conditions Fe becomes less soluble. So
they develop a Fe deficiency disease i.e.
Chlorosis.
 Calcifuges cannot survive in high pH soils
because they fail to absorb Fe2+/Fe3+ and
Mn2+.
In the presence of excess of Ca2+ in soil,
they absorb Ca which interfere with the
metabolism of Fe. This lead to the phenomenon
called ‘lime induced chlorosis’.
[chlorosis is a condition in which leaves
produces insufficient chlorophyll and become
pale yellow or yellow-white]
 CALCICOLES
• The word calcicole is derived from Latin Word (calci =‘lime’ )
+(cole = ‘to dwell’).
• So, calcicole bryophyte is a plant that thrives in lime rich,
alkaline, or calcareous soils and doesn't tolerate acidic soil.

• Examples:
1. Tortula ruralis
2. Tortella tortuosa
3. Fissidens cristatus
4. Ctenidium molluscum
5. Orthotrichum cupulatum
6. Homalothecium sericeum
7. Schistidium apocarpum
Tortella tortuosa
Tortula ruralis
Fissidens cristatus
Ctenidium molluscum
CALCICOLUS HABITAT

Calcicoles are restricted to rocks and

soils containing CaCO3 or inhabit
water that have flowed over or
percolated through these substrata.
Some calcicoles also occur on the
least acid types of tree barks etc.
 Species of bryophytes restricted to calcareous rocks exhibit
concentration of Ca 16-17 times greater then its species found on non
calcareous rocks.

 In both groups of plants this Ca is predominantly in an exchangeable

form.

 Experiments in which exchange site were saturated with Ca+2 ions

indicates calcicoles have Ca+2 exchange capacity (CEC) 3-4 times those
of calcifuges.

 One explanation for this difference is discussed as that a large

affinity for Ca+2 ions corresponds with a large Ca requirement for
permeability control.

 Calcicole mosses may require enriched Ca+2 concentration in their

tissues to maintain the integrity of their cell membrane.

 Following experiments using EDTA to remove Ca+2 from the tissues

(Bates, 1982) hypothesised that calcicoles had inherently leakier cell
membranes. The elevated CEC (cation exchange capacity) of the
calcicoles was hypothesised to be necessary to ensure adequate Ca+2
adsorption for permeability control.
 Calcium exchange capacity is assessed as follows:
Moss samples are immersed in 25mM CaCl2 solutions for one
hour and shaken mechanically. The solution is discarded and
the treatment is repeated . The plant material is then washed
with distilled water( 20 minutes) and the adsorbed Ca+2
displaced by elution with SrCl2 solution.

 Much less is known about specific adaptations of calcicoles

and calcifuges bryophytes then their vascular plant
equivalents.
 Higher calciphytes don’t tolerate acidic soil as under acidic
conditions, Al becomes more soluble and PO43- becomes less
soluble.
 Consequently, Calcicoles grow on acidic soil and often develop
the symptoms of toxicity, i.e. necrosis and PO43- deficiency,
i.e. anthocyanosis ( reddening of leaves) and stunting.
• In case of bryophytes calcicoles, we may
suspect that Al and Fe if present in
substratum will be relatively mobile under
milky alkaline conditions.
• Importantly, Ca status, when isolated from
variables like pH , appears to be relatively
unimportant to bryophytes, Calliergonella
cuspidata, a common moss of chalk shows a
strong preference for pH around neutrality
and will not grow at pH below 6 even if the Ca
concentration is increase.
REFERENCES:
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calcicole
 Shaw A.J, Goffinet B. – “Bryophyte Biology” 2nd Edition-
Cambridge University Press-2009
 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-
8137.1982.tb03256.x/pdf
 http://www.biopix.com/dusky-rock-moss-andreaea-rothii_photo-
54468.aspx
 http://www.cisfbr.org.uk/Bryo/Cornish_Bryophytes_Andreaea_r
othii_subsp_rothii.html
 http://www.centralcoastbiodiversity.org/sidewalk-moss-bull-
tortula-ruralis.html
 http://www.thinkoholic.com/2012/06/25/botanical-field-trip-
slovenia-photos/twisted-tortella-moss-tortella-tortuosa/
 http://www.freenatureimages.eu/plants/Musci,%20Mossen,%20M
osses/Fissidens%20cristatus/index.htmlhttp://www.gbif.org/spe
cies/5281749
 http://www.gbif.org/species/5281749