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Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana

(Linnaeus) Holub

Carolina Clubmoss

G4Apparently Secure Found in 3 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G4Apparently SecureGlobal Rank
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.148529
Element CodePPLYC03030
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumLycophyta
ClassLycopodiopsida
OrderLycopodiales
FamilyLycopodiaceae
GenusPseudolycopodiella
Synonyms
Lycopodiella caroliniana(L.) Pichi SermolliLycopodium carolinianumL.
Other Common Names
slender clubmoss (EN) Slender Clubmoss (EN)
Concept Reference
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Taxonomic Comments
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (1993) does not recognize infrataxa in Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana. Kartesz (1994, 1999) had distinguished Lycopodiella caroliniana var. caroliniana and L. caroliniana var. meridionalis.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2024-03-27
Change Date2024-03-27
Edition Date2024-03-27
Edition AuthorsSoteropoulos (2024)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 - 300
Rank Reasons
Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana is a wide-ranging perennial subshrub fern ally in wet, sandy habitats including prairies and pine flatwoods in the eastern and south central United States from Massachusetts south to Florida and west to Arkansas and east Texas, Mexico, Central America, South America, Asia, and Africa . Threats include development, logging, rights-of-way maintenance activities, recreational activities, deer browse, and invasive species. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and over 200 occurrences this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana occurs in the eastern and south central United States from Massachuesettes south to Florida and west to Arkansas and east Texas, Mexico, Central America, South America, Asia, and Africa (FNA 1993). Range extent was estimated to be approximately 1.9 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024, it is estimated that there are over 200 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Although threats are not widely documented, Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana is threatened by development, succession leading to shading, silvicultural activities, rights-of-way maintenance activities (powerline, railroad, and roadside), recreational activities, deer browse, invasive species, and other threats in some places, though there is insufficient data, including anecdotal accounts, to understand scope and severity of threats for this species (NatureServe 2024).
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana grows in "pine savannas, seepages" (Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2023) and "wet meadows, ditches, pinewoods, and bogs, often with sphagnum moss" (FNA 1993).
Terrestrial Habitats
Woodland - ConiferSavannaGrassland/herbaceous
Palustrine Habitats
Bog/fen
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN4
ProvinceRankNative
AlabamaSNRYes
KentuckySNRYes
MarylandS1Yes
LouisianaSNRYes
New JerseyS3Yes
PennsylvaniaSNRYes
TexasSNRYes
GeorgiaS5Yes
South CarolinaS3Yes
MississippiS4Yes
MassachusettsS1Yes
North CarolinaS3Yes
ArkansasS1Yes
New YorkS1Yes
DelawareSNRYes
FloridaS3Yes
VirginiaSHYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
1 - Residential & commercial developmentUnknownUnknownUnknown
2 - Agriculture & aquacultureUnknownUnknownUnknown
2.2 - Wood & pulp plantationsUnknownUnknownUnknown
2.2.3 - Scale unknown/unrecordedUnknownUnknownUnknown
4 - Transportation & service corridorsUnknownUnknownUnknown
6 - Human intrusions & disturbanceUnknownUnknownUnknown
6.1 - Recreational activitiesUnknownUnknownUnknown
7 - Natural system modificationsUnknownUnknownUnknown
7.1 - Fire & fire suppressionUnknownUnknownUnknown
7.1.2 - Suppression in fire frequency/intensityUnknownUnknownUnknown
8 - Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseasesUnknownUnknownUnknown
8.1 - Invasive non-native/alien species/diseasesUnknownUnknownUnknown
8.1.1 - Unspecified speciesUnknownUnknownUnknown
8.2 - Problematic native species/diseasesUnknownUnknownUnknown
8.2.2 - Named speciesUnknownUnknownUnknown

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Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (3)
Florida (3)
AreaForestAcres
Gum BayApalachicola National Forest11,645
Long BayApalachicola National Forest5,726
SavannahApalachicola National Forest1,927
References (8)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 1993a. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 2. Pteridophytes and gymnosperms. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xvi + 475 pp.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
  3. iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
  4. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
  5. Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
  6. NatureServe. 2024. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
  7. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).
  8. Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. 2023. Flora of the southeastern United States. Edition of April 14, 2023. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. 2105 pp.