Calasterella californica (Liverwort)
Credit: Ixchel Gonzalez-Ramirez
about the species
Calasterella californica is a liverwort that occurs along the west coast of North America and in almost all the ecoregions of California from zero to up to 2000 m above sea level. This liverwort is part of soil crusts and one of the first colonizers of bare soil. It is part of a lineage of plants that exhibits unique morphological and life history traits in the plant kingdom, but that is usually underrepresented in diversity studies.
why species was selected
Calasterella californica is almost endemic to California, with only a few populations extending to neighboring states. To the best of our knowledge, this will be the first study attempting to understand genetic and morphological diversity in a liverwort species. It will have important implications to understand this haploid dominant and spore-dispersed plant.
