The names of all mosses published up to the end of August 2011 in the countries of the Mediterranean basin, the Macaronesian Islands and Bulgaria are compiled in an annotated checklist. The list comprises accepted names and synonyms, and provides explanatory annotations for ambiguous and disputed names. Literature references supporting the reports in each individual area are given only for taxa reported once or in a single locality. A total of 1168 accepted species and 81 infraspecific taxa are reported from the whole area. Mosses / distribution / nomenclature / checklist / Mediterranean

Leptodon corsicus (Neckeraceae) is described as the first endemic moss species from Corsica. It strikingly differs from the other species of the genus by the lack of a dense and pinnate to bipinnate mode of branching; about 10 times smaller shoots that do not inroll upon drying; the lack of paraphyllia; and few, occasional small pseudoparaphyllia. Due to its small size and several leaf characters, L. corsicus shares at first glance more similarities with Homalia webbiana and Neckera besseri than with Leptodon. Yet, phylogenetic analysis of chloroplast and nuclear DNA sequences unambiguously shows that L. corsicus is deeply nested within L. smithii. The numerous morphological characters that distinguish L. corsicus from L. smithii cannot be attributed to plasticity. Consequently, we interpret the phylogenetic position of L. corsicus as the result of a recent speciation process, involving mutations at one or a few coding loci or differences in gene expression, which have tremendous consequences for phenotypic appearance, and retention of ancestral polymorphism in the non-coding sequences used for phylogenetic reconstruction. Such an explanation might also apply to other species of mosses, which exhibit a striking morphology, and yet share identical non-coding sequences with the common species they derive from. The notion of species in mosses is discussed in this context.

Based on a thorough review of the literature as well as floristic surveys undertaken over 20 years, a checklist of the bryophytes of Corsica, a mountainous western Mediterranean island, is presented. The occurrence of 17 liverwort and 44 moss species is documented for the first time from Corsica. As a result, the Corsican bryoflora includes 540 species: 148 liverworts, three hornworts and 389 mosses. Among the species reported, seven liverwort and 17 moss species are red-listed in Europe. By contrast with angiosperms, no bryophyte is endemic to the island based on traditional, phenetic species concepts. The number of new species reported here indicates that Corsica is exceedingly under-recorded bryologically. A better knowledge of the distribution, frequency and ecology of bryophyte species on the island is thus an absolute prerequisite in order to propose appropriate conservation measures in this Mediterranean environment that is, at least locally, severely threatened.KEYWORDS: Corsica, bryoflora, Mediterranean, island endemism. STUDY AREACorsica is a Mediterranean island of 8743 km 2 lying between 40u019 and 41u209 N and between 8u389 and 9u349E. It comprises two French departments, namely Corse-du-Sud (2A) and Haute-Corse (2B), both of which are included within UTM 32T. Corsica has been separated from the European continent, currently distant by 82 km, for at least 4 My. With an average elevation of 568 m, it is the most mountainous of the western Mediterranean islands.Geologically, Corsica comprises two contrasting rock formations that include acid rocks such as granites, rhyolites and gneiss in the western part of the island and more base rich alpine rocks (mica-schist, schist with gabbro and serpentine intrusions) in the east. These two main Journal of Bryology (2007) 29: 41-53 # British Bryological

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