Silvery Bryum
Silvery bryum (Bryum argenteum) is a tiny moss that forms silvery-green cushions in cracks in pavements, roofs and walls. It lives in cities and deserts, and occurs on every continent, including Antarctica.
Silvery bryum (Bryum argenteum) is a tiny moss that forms silvery-green cushions in cracks in pavements, roofs and walls. It lives in cities and deserts, and occurs on every continent, including Antarctica.
🧬 Field Guide Specimen: Open Silvery Bryum in the CRV Science Field Guide to log the specimen, see its place among the Diaphoretickes lineages in the Cladogram Explorer, and test your recall in the Red List conservation game.
Why Silver?
The tips of the leaves are colorless and filled with air, which reflects light and gives a silvery sheen. This may protect the cells from strong light and help them absorb dew.
Surviving Drying and Pollution
The moss dries out completely and revives when wet, a trait called desiccation tolerance. It also tolerates trampling and air pollution better than many mosses, which is why it thrives in urban spots.
Pioneers of Bare Ground
Mosses like this colonize bare soil and rock, stabilizing the surface and starting soil formation, including in biological soil crusts of deserts. See Common Haircap.
Silvery Bryum at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Bryum argenteum |
| Kingdom | Plantae |
| Phylum | Bryophyta |
| Class | Bryopsida |
| Order | Bryales |
| Family | Bryaceae |
| Field Guide group | Diaphoretickes: Plants & Algae |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | Tiny silvery-green cushions in pavement cracks; leaves lack chlorophyll at the tips, giving a silver sheen. |
| Group | Bryophytes |
| Range | All continents |