Panarctic Flora

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010302 Huperzia appressa (Bach.Pyl. ex Desv.) Á. Löve & D. Löve

Distribution

Northern Iceland: Frequent
Northern Fennoscandia: Frequent
Kanin - Pechora: Scattered
Polar Ural - Novaya Zemlya: Scattered
Yamal - Gydan: Rare
Taimyr - Severnaya Zemlya: Rare
Hudson Bay - Labrador: Rare
Western Greenland: Frequent
Eastern Greenland: Frequent
Northern arctic Tundra: Rare
Mid Arctic Tundra: Frequent
Southern Arcti Tundra: Frequent
Shrub Tundra: Frequent
Bordering boreal or alpine areas: Frequent

Geography: North American (NE) - amphi-Atlantic - European (N): ICE NOR RUS SIB CAN GRL.

Notes: Huperzia appressa is northern boreal, alpine, and southern arctic. The name H. appressa, frequently applied in Europe and Russia, is based on plants from Newfoundland and southern Greenland, i.e., from the Flora of North America area. Wagner Jr. and Beitel (1993) instead applied the name H. appalachiana, based on northern Appalachian plants (Beitel and Mickel 1992). They mapped it as the main or only taxon in the regions from where "appressa" was described, and Beitel and Mickel (1992) did not mention the name H. appressa in connection with their description of H. appalachiana. Perhaps they were not aware of its relevance. An alternative hypothesis is that Wagner Jr. and Beitel (1993) may have considered the name H. appressa to belong to one of their unnamed hybrids. The name "appressa" has priority, both for a species and for a subspecies. We apply it in preference to H. appalachiana.

The reports of low-ploid chromosome numbers from Finland are from plants we assign to H. appressa. Several reports of more high-ploid numbers assigned under this name from Iceland and northeastern U.S.A. more likely belong to some other taxon, perhaps H. selago.

Tzvelev (1999a) considered H. petrovii Sipliv. a synonym of H. appressa. Huperzia petrovii was described from southeastern Siberia and would extend the range of H. appressa appreciably if accepted as synonymous. Kharkevicz (1985) accepted H. petrovii from the Arctic in West Chukotka. The name H. petrovii might rather be part of the unresolved variation in the northern amphi-Pacific/Beringian regions, see H. arctica and H. haleakalae below.

Higher Taxa