First Advisor
Sarah Eppley
Date of Award
6-16-2021
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Biology and University Honors
Department
Biology
Language
English
Subjects
Bryophytes, Ecosystem services, Biotic communities
DOI
10.15760/honors.1068
Abstract
Bryophytes, which include mosses, liverworts, and hornworts, are non-vascular plants that provide crucial ecosystem services in natural and urban systems. In natural systems, these services include carbon, water, and nutrient cycling and maintenance of community level biodiversity. In urban systems, bryophytes can be used as green roof substrate, as bioindicators to monitor pollution and air quality, for horticulture uses, and in medicine. Although bryophytes possess some qualities, such as reproduction by spores, that may give them an advantage compared to vascular plants as the climate warms, their response to climate change remains understudied. This paper will review the literature on the extent to which bryophytes influence ecosystem processes in natural and urban systems and suggest that further research is needed to determine how to effectively conserve bryophytes in a warming world.
Rights
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Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/35687
Recommended Citation
Spangler, Keila, "Bryophyte Ecosystem Services: How Bryophytes Impact Ecosystem Processes and Their Use in Urban Systems" (2021). University Honors Theses. Paper 1042.
https://doi.org/10.15760/honors.1068