Bryophyte flora of the Apodi Plateau, Ceará, Brazil

Abstract In the state of Ceará, bryophytes have been mainly sampled in humid and sub-humid enclaves, remnants of Atlantic rain forest, while studies in the Caatinga Domain are practically non-existent. The present work aimed to survey the floristic composition of bryophytes of the Apodi Plateau, a region predominantly covered by Caatinga. Collections were conducted as part of the field activities of the Program for Research in the Biodiversity of the Semiarid region of Brazil (PPBio). The briological material was collected in 2014, in the Apodi Plateau located within the territory of Ceará state. Fifty-nine bryophyte species were found: 27 liverworts - Marchantiophyta - distributed in seven families and 11 genera, and 32 mosses - Bryophyta - distributed in 14 families and 26 genera. Among the species found, 25 were new records for the state of Ceará and Riccia subplana is reported for the first time for the Northeast region of Brazil. Twenty-three are new records for the Caatinga Domain. Taxonomic comments are provided for the new records for the state of Ceará and for Caatinga, as well as an illustration of the species Weisiopsis bahiensis.