Scapania paludicola and Matt's other finds

Matt Sutton has been busy in Pembrokeshire, looking for species that I missed whilst recording for The Mosses and Liverworts of Pembrokeshire.  He has made numerous new hectad records over the last couple of years, and found Ditrichum lineare new to the county in 2017.  Last year he made two additions - Bryum moravicum near Kilgetty and Scapania paludicola near Llangolman - as well as finding notably disjunct rarities such as Porella obtusata on the south coast near Saundersfoot and Cephaloziella turneri in a gully on the north coast near Strumble Head.  Although VC45 is probably the most intensely recorded county in Wales for bryophytes, diligent searching is bound to turn up new things.

Matt's Scapania paludicola is particularly welcome because it helps with a longstanding puzzle.  This species was thought to be very rare in Britain, but my CCW colleagues began finding it in pH-neutral mires across much of Wales and the Atlas suggests it is something of a Welsh speciality.  However, forms of Scapania irrigua mimic the leaf shape and arched keel of S. paludicola and I have long held a nagging doubt that the widespread Welsh plant might just be extreme S. irrigua.  This was not helped by the complete lack of gemmae on Welsh plants, unlike a couple I was sent from Scotland as Recorder for Hepatics.  Matt's find had dark gemmae, finally putting my mind at ease.  I am now confident that the Welsh mire Scapania really is S. paludicola.  Matt's plants were alongside typical neutral mire species: Sphagnum papillosum, Aulacomnium palustre and Straminergon stramineum.