Mate limited reproductive success in two dioicous mosses

We tested whether mate availability in the pleurocarpous dioicous mosses Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus and Abietinella abietina affects fertilization success by transplanting individual male shoots into non-sporophytic female colonies. Fertilization success in both species was limited by the availability of mates and distance-dependent, and the number of sporophytes produced was higher in R. triquetrus than in A. abietina. Our estimate of a maximum fertilization distance of 34 cm, in R. triquetrus is an order of magnitude larger than previous estimates that have been based on non-manipulative approaches. In R. triquetrus the number of female reproductive branches and plot inclination (horizontal vs sloping) had significant effects on the number of sporophytes produced. In A. abietina, the number of female reproductive branches per plot did not affect sporophyte production. Within sloping experimental plots, sporophyte number was significantly higher, and the distance of sporophytes from the spermatozoid source was larger below the male transplants than above. We conclude that mate availability may be important for reproductive success in sessile dioecious organisms, and that the spatial structure at various scales is essential to understand their dynamics.