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Liverworts, mosses, and hornworts - technically referred to as bryophytes - are considered to be a pivotal group in our understanding of the origin of land plants because they are believed to be among the earliest diverging lineages. Bryophytes are ecologically significant, contributing to nutrient cycles, forming a major component of forest canopy humus, and are effective rainfall interceptors that add to hill stability and help to prevent soil erosion. Many bryophytes also have chemical constituents that show important biological activities such as anti-micorbial, anti-fungal, and muscle relaxing activity.
The Field Museum holds approximately 250,000 unaccessioned and accessioned bryophyte specimens. At present, more than 45,000 searchable records are available. The majority of these records represent accessioned specimens from New Zealand and mostly unaccessioned specimens of the Mary Taylor herbarium (primarily of collections from the southern Appalachians of North America), and Marko Lewis' collections of bryophytes from Bolivia. The database is searchable by the various fields below, including taxon (at any taxonomic rank), distribution and ecology, or one can search specific localities or regions. Note that for many records, identification is to genus level only; species identifications will be completed as soon as groups have been revised. All liverwort type specimens are databased. The moss types are in the process of being databased. For further information on bryophytes in general visit: www.liverworts.org. For information about the collections and their background, visit the descriptions of the bryophyte collections of the Field Museum.
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