Do you know bryophytes? They are small plants, most often green in color and devoid of flowers. They have captured the attention of researchers for several weeks in Benin. An exploratory mission was carried out in the Lama forest in mid-September 2023.
Rainy morningNational Herbarium of Benin, this Saturday, September 16, 2023. However, inside the mountain room, around thirty young researchers are focused on the objectives of their microscopes. “We are in the process of identifying species of bryophytes,” explains Judicaël Makponsè, one of the young researchers.
Professor Terry Hedderson of the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Photo credit: Dr. Hospice Dassou
Alongside them, Terry Hedderson, professor at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, and Lova Marline, researcher specializing in bryophytes at the Kew Madagascar Conservation Center, provide guidelines. “We are here to train this team in collecting, processing and storing bryophyte samples. These are species that have great ecological importance, but there are very few specialists in Africa and Benin,” underlines Lova Marline.
Unravel the mystery
Little known, bryophytes nevertheless constitute the second largest group of plants in the world, with more than 20,000 species. According to scientists, these species have valuable assets. The absence of scientific data in Benin on these plants prevents us from exploring their full potential as plant resources and from developing a responsible and sustainable management policy.
Lova Marline, bryophyte specialist at the Kew Madagascar Conservation Center. Photo credit Dr Hospice Dassou
“Bryophytes have interesting medicinal properties. They constitute a precious reservoir of antioxidant, anticancer and antiviral molecules which are not really exploited. Given their sensitivity to temperature, these resources can be used to assess the effects of climate change on biodiversity,” explains the doctor Hospice Dassouresearcher at the National Herbarium of Benin and coordinator of BryoBen.
In search of data on bryophytes
Launched in June 2023 at the University of Abomey-Calavi, BryoBen is a project aimed at mobilizing and making available data on bryophytes to promote education, conservation and sustainable management of this neglected taxonomic group in Benin .
With the support of the foundation JRS Biodiversity, the project will assess the diversity, geographic distribution, ecology and conservation status of bryophytes in Benin. The socio-economic importance and threats to bryophytes in Benin will also be assessed.
“The majority of bryophyte specimens from Benin are identified, stored in the National Herbarium and an Atlas of the bryophytic flora of Benin with an identification key is published. All specimen samples are georeferenced, and a database is designed and published on the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), with many images provided on the iNaturalist digital platform,” explains Dr. Hospice Dassou.
In the heart of the Lama forest for collecting bryophytes. Photo credit: Dr Hospice Dassou
In this quest to unravel the mystery of bryophytes, the skills of four Master students, two doctoral students and four technicians were strengthened in the best techniques and procedures for collecting bryophytes to ensure easy identification of the collected specimens and efficient storage. A field demonstration with the experts followed in the Lama forest.
It is a classified forest in the phytogeographic zone with Guinean-Congolese affinity in South Benin, which extends over 16,250 hectares spread between the departments of Atlantique and Zou, about a hundred kilometers from Cotonou. . “I can assure you that the harvest was fruitful on the ground. We are waiting to identify the species, hoping to discover new ones,” says Lova, enthusiastically.