Plants of Cloudbridge
Lycopodium
spp. (Lycopods, club mosses)
Description:
Ground
plants found in pasture and secondary growth. Stems soft and without
joints, creeping or erect, with many small triangular, scalelike leaves. Average about 10 cm
meters height.
Natural history: This is a pioneer
species that grows rapidly in disturbed areas. It is a very ancient
plant, among the first vascular plants to appear on earth. Lycopods
take the form of epiphytes as well as ground plants.
Distribution: Found throughout
Cloudbridge in open areas, and under similar conditions in other parts
of Costa Rica.
How
to recognize: They look like tiny pine trees, and are often
clustered in miniature forests. They have true roots, stems, and
many small,
scale-like leaves that attach to the stems in a characteristic spiral
pattern.
Uses: Many parts of the world rely on lycophytes for electricity!
For forty million years in the
Carboniferous Period (345 to 288 million years ago) these club mosses
were 35 meter tall
"scale trees" forming real forests. Scale trees are common fossils and
a significant constituent of
coal.
Sources and Links:
INBio description
SysTax
and others
Scientific Information:
| Division: |
Lycophyta?
|
| Class: |
|
| Order: |
|
| Family: |
Lycopodiaceae |
| Species: |
Lycopodium sp.
|
Photo
Identification Guide: SLycopodium
spp.
(Lycopods, club mosses)
| Leaves. Small,
triangular, scale-like leaves in spiral pattern along stem. |
|
Fruit and Seeds. No fruit.
|
|
Form. The plant
grows close to the ground, often drooping. Some have branches, like the
one at right, while others are single-stemmed.
|
|
Cloudbridge: Bridging
a Costa Rican cloud forest