An Annotated Checklist and Atlas of the Mosses of
Welcome | Abstract | Introduction | Acknowledgments
Systematic Arrangement of Genera | Recognized Species
Checklist | Literature Cited
Thailand (Siam) is situated in the southeastern corner of Asia
between the latitudes 6o-20o N and longitudes
98o-105o E, sharing borders on west and
northwest by Myanmar (Burma), on northeast by Laos, on southeast
by Kampuchea (Cambodia), and on south by Malaysia (Map 1).
With an area of 514,000 square kilometers, Thailand exhibits a
diverse landscape, ranging from sea level to 2,850 meters in elevation.
The most conspicuous terrain features of Thailand include several
high mountains, a lowland central plain dominated by the Chao
Phraya River, and an undulating dry upland plateau bordered by
the Mekong River. The climate is characterized by tropical monsoon
system which reverses its cycle seasonably. This variability in
topography and climate has produced a diverse vegetation that
includes a large number of mosses, representing one of the richest
moss floras in the tropical Asia.
The latest catalogue of Thai mosses was published by Tixier
(1971) who enumerated 516 accepted species. Recently, Tan & Iwatsuki
(1993) published a useful checklist of Indochinese mosses, including
references of 563 Thai mosses. However, the later checklist was
based on published literature without citing specimen data and
locality information. Since Tixier's (1971) study, an updated
specimen-based checklist of the mosses of Thailand has not been
available for comparison. The present study attempts to compile
an up-to-date and annotated specimen-based catalogue, including
the distribution of all moss species known to be present in Thailand
by provincial occurrences on dotted maps.