A catalog of Bryophyta types deposited at the National Museum of Brazil

While visiting the Herbarium of the Botany Department of the National Museum of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (code, R), we located the types of 219 bryophyte names, most of which were published by Karl Müller (cited as Müller Hallensis), whose holotypes were lost during the bombing of the Berlin Herbarium in 1943. A total of 181 names (82%) are possible candidates for lectotypification and most likely not to be found elsewhere. We also found the complete collection of Müller’s “Bryologia Serrae Itatiaiae”, made by Ernst Ule.


Introduction
Good taxonomic practice relies largely on correct location and identification of type material.However, locating and studying type specimens can be complicated for several reasons.Type specimens are often distributed over several herbaria or lost due to wars or other events.An example is the loss of the Berlin Herbarium in 1943 (Merrill 1943).
Within the realm of bryology, one of the most prolific botanists in describing new species was Karl Johan August Müller (1818Müller ( -1899)), from Halle, Germany (cited as Müller Hallensis).During his active years, he described many new species, probably more than any other bryologist ever.As an example, Müller (1898) described 117 new species, most from a single mountain in Brazil (Serra do Itatiaia).Unfortunately, in 1943, the Berlin Herbarium (the repository of his collections) was bombed and destroyed by fire (Merrill 1943;Hiepko 1987), a catastrophe of major proportions for the field of botany.As a consequence, many types, including some that were on loan from other herbaria and all types of Müller names housed there (many from Brazil), were lost.Since then, locating possible duplicates in other herbaria has been a major challenge and a taxonomic impediment.Many taxonomic works often have to deal with lost Müller types (e.g., Pursell 2007;Reese 1993).
The Herbarium of the Botany Department of the National Museum of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (code, R) is the oldest herbarium in Brazil.It was created in 1818, about the same time as when the first studies of the bryoflora of Brazil were undertaken (Martius 1818;Hooker 1818Hooker -1820;;Raddi 1822).The Museum was created by King D. João VI of Portugal.For more than a century (until the 1960s), it housed the largest, and only, bryophyte collection in Brazil.It contains all relevant historical collections from Brazil, including many specimens from botanists such as Ernst Ule (1854-1915), Auguste Glaziou (1828-1906), Anders Regnell (1807-1818), Ludwig Riedel (1790-1861), and Per Dusén (1855-1926).Some of those early scientists were hired to work for the National Museum, including Ludwig Riedel, who was the first foreigner to have a permanent position at the Museum, Ernst Ule, who was the director of botany at the Museum, and Auguste Glaziou, who was the director of its public gardens.It currently houses a bryophyte collection of approximately 6015 specimens, including many types.Because the Museum underwent a long period of renovation, the collection was closed for many years.To our knowledge, no one has ever investigated the bryophyte types deposited there.Because it is now open to scientists, we were able to visit the Museum and examine the bryophyte collection.We found many types (mostly Müller Hallensis, as well as other relevant types), which we list here.Is very likely that some of the Müller Hallensis types found at the Museum are the only ones remaining after the 1943 destruction of the Berlin Herbarium and may be the best or even the only specimens available to serve as lectotypes.

Material and methods
We used the appropriate literature and the website of the Missouri Botanical Garden (www.tropicos.org)to locate the protologues and compare them with the label data.Because we are not providing a taxonomic revision, no taxonomic considerations are made; we did not perform any lectotypifications, synonymizations, or combinations.Taxonomic comments are provided when needed.Basionyms are presented here in alphabetical order.Protologues are not cited verbatim.
As many of the collections housed at the Museum were made by Ernst Ule, it is important to note that his collections often have two numbers, one is his personal collection number and the other refers to the exsiccata number in his Bryotheca Brasiliensis (Brotherus 1899).In the present paper, we present his collection number, using his Bryotheca Brasiliensis only when necessary.Because Müller Hallensis holotypes were destroyed in Berlin in 1943 (Hiepko 1987(Hiepko , 1990)), all of the Müller names found that have not yet been lectotypified are here considered isotypes or isosyntypes.

Results and discussion
We found a total of 271 specimens, types of 219 names (some were duplicates), mostly of Müller Hallensis names, including the types of the genera Cladastomum Müll.Hal. and Meiotheciopsis Broth.Among those are 21 types of species endemic to Brazil.There was one holotype, as well as 130 isotypes, 99 isosyntypes (from 53 names), and 35 isolectotypes.A total of 181 names (82%) are possible candidates for lectotypification.In addition, 105 names (47%) have been already synonymized.
Some of the names presented here seem to have been ignored over the years, because they are mostly absent from the literature, no new combinations or synonymizations having been made.Because there have been few monographic studies of Brazilian mosses, the status of many of those names has yet to be investigated in taxonomic studies.
At the Museum, we also observed numerous original specimens of invalid or unpublished (in sched.)names, which are not presented here.We found the complete collection of Müller's "Bryologia Serrae Itatiaiae" (Müller 1898), made by Ernst Ule (1854Ule ( -1915)), German botanist and former Director of Botany at the Museum.
The numbers presented here may yet increase, because some dubious specimens are still under investigation.In addition, the liverworts (Marchantiophyta) have yet to be investigated.