# Planted Tanks > Plant Talk > Aquatic Moss Club >  Mosses and the men who love them - Part VIII

## timebomb

Hi, everyone,

I was with the professor at his lab last night. Here's my report:

Carl Justo who lives in New Jersey, USA sent a moss he bought from a fish shop. Carl thought the moss is a species of _Fontinalis_. The moss was all brown when it reached me. Here's a picture:

Fortunately, the moss does not have to be alive before the professor can identify it. He examined the moss and said it's _Leptodictyum riparium_, commonly known as Stringy Moss.

Everett (aka aliasnumber1) found a moss in the patio of her home in Greenbelt MD, USA. She transferred some to her tanks and they grew well in it. Everett thinks they look like some sort of _Fissidens_. Here's a picture:

The professor said it belongs to the group known as _Amblystegium serpens_. Everett christened her moss "Patio Moss" but Tony (aka Gomer) called it "Nano Moss" when he sent a sample more than 2 years ago. Here's a picture of the _A. serpens_ in Tony's tank:
 

Satu Jaske who lives in Finland sent 7 mosses. She packed them very well and labeled them mosses 1 to 7. "Mitta kuuluu, Satu", the professor sends his greetings  :Laughing: 

Satu thought moss number 1 which she got from a hobbyist in Denmark is Willow Moss. You're right, Satu. It's _Fontinalis antipyretica var. antipyretica_ aka Willow Moss. Here's a picture:


Moss number 2 was collected from Germany where, Satu says, it grows to over 50 cm in length. Satu thinks it's _Fontinalis antipyretica var. gigantea_ and he's right again. Here's a picture:


Satu thought that moss number 3 could be _Pellia neesian_a or _epiphylla_. I'm afraid you're wrong this time, Satu. It's not a moss, not even a bryophyte. The plant is a Fern gametophyte. According to the professor, no one knows its identity as despite many attempts, botanists all over the world were unable to make the fern produce its second generation where it should sprout stems and leaves. The plant is of great interest to botanists and if you can get them to sprout stems, it will be a major scientific breakthrough. Here's a picture of the fern gametophyte:


Satu thought moss number 4 which is native to Germany is either _Drepanocladus aduncus_ or _Leptodictyum riparium_ but the professor said it's Nano Moss. In other words, _Amblystegium serpens_. Picture here:


Satu thought moss number 5 could be Willow Moss. She said it's native to the US of A. It's from the USA alright but it isn't _Fontinalis antipyretica_ but also _Leptodictyum riparium_. Picture here:


Satu noticed that moss number 6 attaches itself well to driftwoods. She suspects it could be Singapore Moss or some other species of _Vesicularia_. It isn't. It's a species of _Taxiphyllum_ and could very well be the common Java Moss, _Taxiphyllum barbieri_. Pic here:


As for moss number 7, Satu thought it could be "Mini Moss". The common name, "Mini Moss" does not mean anything to me as I don't know which moss it refers to. So far, all the aquarium mosses that have already been identified by the professor carry common names but none uses "Mini Moss". I would strongly suggest we stop using this common name until we know which particular species it refers to or else it would get very confusing. Anyway, moss number 7 is a _Vesicularia_. As we do not know it's origin, the professor can only identify the genus and not the species. Pic here:


The professor said _Leptodictyum riparium_ (Stringy Moss), _Amblystegium serpens_(Nano Moss) and _Fontinalis antipyretica_(Willow Moss) are mosses that are very widespread in North America and Europe. If you live in either of these 2 continents, chances are the mosses you find around your homes belong to one of these 3 species. They are temperate mosses and are usually found in very wet places. 

The _L. riparium_ and _A. serpens_ are mosses with leaves that show a distinct mid-costa (a vein that runs right through the middle of the leaf) but I suppose it would be hard to see it without the aid of a microscope. The leaves of the _F. antipyretica_ do not exhibit such a vein. I took some pictures of the _L. riparium_ and _A. serpens_ through the lens of the microscope. Here they are:

*Leptodictyum riparium*


*Amblystegium serpens*


That's all for my report, folks. Hope the information was of interest to you.

Loh K L

<<--Part VII ......Part IX-->>

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## Robert

Hi K L,
thank you for this new report! It is nice to see the IDs of the mosses I collected. Satu, who is a young woman, got moss number 2 and number 4 from me last year. I found them in ponds here in Mecklenburg-Westpommerania (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern), north-east Germany. Both can be kept in tropical tanks but it is hard to convert the wild plants to the hot conditions of a tropical normal tank. The _ Fontinalis antipyretica var. gigantea_ grows very slowly and becomes quite small. In the wild it fills a whole 0.1ha big pond. On my windows sill it hardly survives and in my tanks it dies sooner or later. The _Amblystegium serpens_ grows much better and can grow quite fast. It is very hardy and it is really hard to get rid of it again. 

best regards

Robert

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## timebomb

> Satu, who is a young woman, got moss number 2 and number 4 from me last year.


Robert, I'm surprised that Satu is a woman's name. I'm sorry I got the gender wrong. I've edited my post to change all the he's to she's. 

Over here in Singapore, the hobbyists who have cooling systems in their setups don't have problems keeping the _Fontinalis antipyretica_ alive. 

Loh K L

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## Martin

funny..

the fontinalis she had sent from denmark... guess who sent it..hehe  :Shocked:  


it's me...

world is small sometimes.

Oh, and recently got mosses from Robert as well.

oh and the F. Antipyretica I had sent from Singapore.

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## timebomb

It's a large world but I like to think that moss lovers in general are a generous people. We share what we have with others and with mosses, it's really not difficult to send them from one corner of the world to another.

I won't call myself a generous person as I hardly give to charities but whenever I send a moss and it arrives at its destination in good condition, I like to think I made someone in some part of the world very happy, even if the happiness lasts for just a few days.

Loh K L

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## Martin

true.

I try to give plants away when I can. Some plants I like to charge a little for, just to cover costs etc. but generally I dont mind giving away stuff. But if I paid a lot for the plant, I like to get a bit back.

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## rain-

Hyvaa kuuluu. Kiitoksia professor!

Thank you for the identification. I was really surprised about the _Leptodictyum riparium_ (it feels so rough, the same way as Fontinalis mosses feel), which is growing really vigorously in my tank now, and _Amblystegium serpens_, the information about the fern gametophyte is really fascinating too. I would have never quessed that it is a fern.  :Very Happy: 

I just recently got back home from vacation and was so happy to find an envelope waiting for me when I got back. Thank you for the Taiwan Moss!

And yes, this world really is small nowadays. Robert has been really kind and sent me beautiful mosses and plants (the Hemianthus callitrichoides has been trying to take over Finland, it grows amazingly fast). And Symbiot is such a great person too (you'll be getting mail soon  :Wink:  ).

_Fontinalis antipyretica var. gigantea_ seems to be liking my tank. It doesn't grow really fast, but the growth is moderate and steady (22-25C, pH 6,5-7, KH 2-3, GH 3-4, NO3 15-20 ppm). And yeah, _Amblystegium serpens_ really is a fast grower, I also love the way it grows above water:

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## Martin

*sound of jaw dropping*

my god, that is a really nice shot.

Satu, did you send the package already? oh my....

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## rain-

Thank you.  :Smile:  There's also a White Pearl shrimp in that picture just below the water level. The package will be leaving tomorrow. =)

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## timebomb

> I just recently got back home from vacation and was so happy to find an envelope waiting for me when I got back. Thank you for the Taiwan Moss!


Welcome to the forum, Rain. If it's all the same to you, we would prefer that you sign off with your real name. If you noticed, most of the users here do that. 

What moss is that in your picture? You only showed us the top of the tank. What about what's below? Please let us see more of your tank. Thank you.

Loh K L

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## Robert

Hi Satu,
thank you for the kinds words and the nice picture! 

K L, Satu's picture shows emerse growing _Amblystegium serpens_ . Above the water surface it grows a bit slower and stays smaller but it grows easily in wet places. In nature you can find it growing emerse and submerse e.g. on the bark of a tree at the shore of a pond. 

These pictures shows the same moss growing in one of my guppy breeding tanks on my HMF:





It were only a few fronds which found somehow the way into this tank. Now the moss grows mainly on the filter material. The tank has a cover, so it so it has to stay small above the water surface because there is only 1-2cm left. 

best regards

Robert

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## timebomb

Thanks for the pics, Robert. They are lovely, especially the first picture. The _A. serpen_s looks absolutely stunning in emersed form. I still have some leftover from Satu's package so I will definitely try my hand at growing them emersed. 

By the way, folks, I may need some help with pictures of the 3 temperate mosses (_L. riparium, A. serpens and F. antipyretica_) later. When the professor has written his article, it will first be submitted to TAG (The Aquatic Gardener) for publication. The article won't look good without pictures so this is where you can help. I don't have the 3 mosses in my tanks so I can't provide the pics this time. If your picture is published, credit will be given to you, of course. 

Loh K L

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## rain-

Oh, thank you for hinting about the name thing, I only now realised to check the forum rules.  :Smile: 

I think I'll put some of the _L. riparium_ above the water line too, seems like it should look pretty too growing like that. The _A. serpens_ really is a beauty, I love the softness of it. It has thickened really well now growing on that piece of wood, a few months ago it looked like this (the branch was sticking out of the water a bit more then):



And this is how the whole tank looked like last month right after heavy plant trimming:



And I would be happy to help with the pictures. I'll see if I already have some nice pictures in my computer and if not, I'll take some new ones.  :Smile:

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## Martin

Perhaps, Loh, it is time to alter the topic titles a bit.

I think Satu enjoys mosses as much as us 'Men'

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## Robert

Hi K L,
of course you can get some pictures. I was already looking for the pictures of wild _Amblystegium serpens_  but couldn't find them yet. I will try to find them or take new ones but this is not possible at the moment. Of course I can take some pictures of it growing in my tanks and how it looks like under different light and nutrient conditions.

I also have pictures of _Fontinalis antipyretica var. gigantea_  in the pond where I found it. I have have even more pictures of another subspecies of _Fontinalis antipyretica_, the ones which is known as Willow Moss (I've alsready shown some of them here in the forum a while ago). I have pictures of it growing emerse and submerse, so that is really no problem. Just send me a pm. 

best regards

Robert

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## timebomb

Satu,

Thanks for signing off with your real name and for showing us the pictures of your tank. It's beautiful. By the way, do you know that in Malay (one of the languages spoken in Singapore), Satu means "one". 

I don't know if I should take up Martin's suggestion to change the title of the moss threads. Somehow or other, "Mosses and the men/women who love them" or "Mosses and the folks who love them" doesn't sound quite right. I'm not being chavinistic and I'm well aware that there are quite a few women who love mosses just as much as the men do but "Mosses and the men who love them" is such a catchy title, don't you think? It rhymes and carries a punch, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, I like to thank you all for offering to help with pictures of the 3 temperate mosses. I'm not sure if the professor prefers pictures of the mosses in the wild or of them in our tanks. But my guess is it's better to show pictures of how the mosses are grown in our tanks because the idea is to promote the hobby and show others how beautiful the mosses can be when they are grown in aquariums.

So, for starters, can you please send your first picture over to me, Robert? I think the one which shows the _A. serpens_ growing emersed is such a lovely picture. I need the picture in as big as a format as possible because with publications, small pictures don't look good. 

Satu, if the moss on your driftwood is _L. riparium_, can you please take a closer shot of the moss? The perspective in your first picture looks great. Just shoot from the same angle but go a little closer, ok?

Alternatively, I would prefer unpublished pictures. In other words, pictures that have never been uploaded to any web sites. This is to give the article when it comes out in TAG some exclusiveness. I'm sure the editor of TAG would prefer it this way. So please just send the pictures to me at [email protected]. Please do not post them here. Thank you.

Loh K L

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## fish newb

hi im new here usually at the planted tank. rain- and i belive we have the same moss and we believed it was "Stringy moss" then rain pmed me on TPT telling me hers was IDed as "nano moss." 

mine looks the same as rain's and the same as also posted growing alone in the rock. but i when i collected mine down the street from me on a golf course it looked exactly like the "stringy moss" that was IDed first. my question is would it be possible for the water temperature to change the moss? 

the moss i collected i did it on a "snow day" where i was out of school and sleeding with some friends on the way back i grabbed it and brought it home. it looked MUCH diffrent then compared to now. 

could the temp have something to do with it?

- andrew

also. how would i go about sending you a sample to ID? i sent you a pm  :Very Happy:

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