Stag's horn clubmosses
Family: Lycopodiaceae
Example: Stag's-horn Clubmoss (Lycopodium clavatum); Marsh Clubmoss (Lycopodiella inundata); Fir Clubmoss (Huperzia selago); Alpine Clubmoss (Diphasiastrum alpinum)
Clubmosses
Fire effect on plant
Little information is known for UK club mosses. Information for one species, Lycopodium clavatum, suggests individuals are killed by fire. In a North American club moss species (Stiff club moss; Lycopodium annotinum), invididuals were killed by fire except in quick, low-intensity fires where rhizomes survived (Eriksson 1989).
Key traits
Rhizomes (at the soil surface or below-ground). Some species (e.g. Lycopodium clavatum) rely entirely on spores for reproduction.
Plant response to fire
Club moss survival may depend upon the depth of rhizomes which can be at the soil surface or belowground. However the UK species listed above all have surficial rhizomes which may make them vulnerable to damage by fire (Coupe et al. 1982), although they may survive a low-intensity fire and resprout. Reports of clubmoss abundance before and after fire in North America show club moss populations being decimated by fire and taking several years to attain pre-fire abundances (Foster 1985; MacLean and Wein 1977). For stag's-horn club moss (Lycopodium clavatum), cyclical burning regime for heath management is thought to have killed off many local populations in the UK (BSBI 2024).
Timing of history
N/A
Conservation Status
Protected - Lycopodiella inundata.
References
Stag's horn clubmosses
Clubmosses
Family: Lycopodiaceae
Example: Stag's-horn Clubmoss (Lycopodium clavatum); Marsh Clubmoss (Lycopodiella inundata); Fir Clubmoss (Huperzia selago); Alpine Clubmoss (Diphasiastrum alpinum)
Plant response to fire
Little information is known for UK club mosses. Information for one species, Lycopodium clavatum, suggests individuals are killed by fire. In a North American club moss species (Stiff club moss; Lycopodium annotinum), invididuals were killed by fire except in quick, low-intensity fires where rhizomes survived (Eriksson 1989).
Key traits
Rhizomes (at the soil surface or below-ground). Some species (e.g. Lycopodium clavatum) rely entirely on spores for reproduction.
Plant response to fire
Club moss survival may depend upon the depth of rhizomes which can be at the soil surface or belowground. However the UK species listed above all have surficial rhizomes which may make them vulnerable to damage by fire (Coupe et al. 1982), although they may survive a low-intensity fire and resprout. Reports of clubmoss abundance before and after fire in North America show club moss populations being decimated by fire and taking several years to attain pre-fire abundances (Foster 1985; MacLean and Wein 1977). For stag's-horn club moss (Lycopodium clavatum), cyclical burning regime for heath management is thought to have killed off many local populations in the UK (BSBI 2024).
Timing of history
N/A
Conservation Status
Protected - Lycopodiella inundata.
References
Botanical Society of Britain and Island (BSBI) 2024. Lycopodium clavatum L., Stag's-horn Club moss. https://fermanagh.bsbi.org/lycopodium-clavatum-l [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]
Coupe, R.A., Ray, C.A., Comeau, A., Ketcheson, M.V., Annas, R. 1982. A guide to some common plants in the Skeena Area, British Columbia.Land Management Handbook 4. Ministry of Forests, Province of British Columbia. [Empirical evidence; grey literature]
Eriksson, O. 1989. Seedling dynamics and life histories in clonal plants. Oikos 55: 231-238. [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]
MacLean, D.A., Wein, R.W., 1977. Changes in understory vegetation with increasing stand age in New Brunswick forests: species composition, cover, biomass, and nutrients. Canadian Journal of Botany 55: 2818-2831. [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]
Foster, D.R. 1985. Vegetation development following fire in Picea mariana (black spruce) - Pleurozium forests of south-eastern Labrador, Canada. Journal of Ecology. 73: 517-534. [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]