Taxonomic Studies In The Aquatic Moss Genus PLATYHYPNIDIUM (BRACHYTHECIACEAE)

The generic affinities of the aquatic moss genus Platyhypnidium were investigated by several analytic techniques: traditional light microscopy, phenetic analyses of dimensional measurements (Analysis of Variance and principal Components Analysis), and phylogenetic analyses of morphological and molecular data. Ten rostrate-operculate Brachytheciaceae were closely studied. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the nuclear ribosomal DNA was used as a molecular marker in three of the phylogenetic analyses.