Phylogeny of Three East Antarctic Mosses

Mosses are the key floral component of Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems and provide a model system for the in vivo study of freeze tolerance and ultraviolet-B radiation damage in plants. Furthermore, in the Windmill Islands region of East Antarctica, these plants form part of a long term biodiversity study, using mosses as a proxy for the effects of climate change on Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems. However, morphological similarities between Antarctic moss species may make biodiversity measurements error prone. Furthermore, the species status and phylogenetic relationships of Windmill Islands mosses have not been examined using molecular techniques.