
Led by drylands ecologist David Eldridge of the University of New South Wales in Australia and ecosystem ecologist Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo of the Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Sevilla in Spain, the study uncovered evidence that mosses have the potential to store a massive amount of carbon in the soil beneath them.Ĭo-authors include University of Michigan forest ecologist Peter Reich, director of the Institute for Global Change Biology at the School for Environment and Sustainability. The global contribution of soil mosses to ecosystem services, DOI 10.1038/s41560-x.īut here’s an interesting finding: A recent study published in Nature Geoscience suggests that moss, those tiny plants we often see on the ground or rocks, might also be an important antidote to climate change. For instance, over its lifetime, a tree can absorb more than a ton of carbon from the air and store it in wood and roots. Plant life plays a crucial role in fighting climate change by absorbing and transforming greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. Image credit: University of New South Wales Mosses play a crucial role in establishing the groundwork for the flourishing of other plant species. The presence of mosses blanketing the soil is actually a positive indication rather than a negative one.
