National Herbarium (Liverworts, Hornworts, and Mosses - Bryophytes), National Biodiversity Centre (THIM-bryo)
Bhutan’s bryophytes—comprising mosses, liverworts, and hornworts—form an exceptionally rich and ecologically important component of the country’s flora. Owing to Bhutan’s dramatic elevational gradients, moist montane forests, and pristine river valleys, bryophytes thrive from subtropical lowlands to high alpine zones. Many species carpet forest floors, cloak tree trunks and branches, or line shaded rock faces, contributing significantly to soil formation, water regulation, and habitat stability. Although still under-documented compared to vascular plants, Bhutan’s bryophyte diversity reflects the nation’s outstanding biological heritage and offers valuable indicators of forest health, climate patterns, and ecosystem integrity.
The diverse ecosystems and eco-floristic zones have made Bhutan home to a wide array of bryophytes. This collection is an assemblage of specimen records from Bhutan currently accessible through the National Biodiversity Centre National Herbarium held in Bhutan.
The National Herbarium was initiated by the Department of Forests and Parks Services in conjunction with the Flora of Bhutan Project in the mid 1970s. In 1987 the herbarium was moved to Taba and housed with the forest research library under the Forest Research Division. With the establishment of National Biodiversity Centre in 1999, the herbarium was relocated to the present location at Serbithang. The new herbarium building at Serbithang was completed in 2002, with funding support from Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA). Currently, the herbarium houses more than 19,000 barcoded herbarium specimens of Angiosperms, Gymnosperms, Pteridophytes (+2000), Fungi, Lichens and Byrophytes (+850).
The diverse ecosystems and eco-floristic zones have made Bhutan home to a wide array of bryophytes. This collection is an assemblage of specimen records from Bhutan currently accessible through the National Biodiversity Centre National Herbarium held in Bhutan.
The National Herbarium was initiated by the Department of Forests and Parks Services in conjunction with the Flora of Bhutan Project in the mid 1970s. In 1987 the herbarium was moved to Taba and housed with the forest research library under the Forest Research Division. With the establishment of National Biodiversity Centre in 1999, the herbarium was relocated to the present location at Serbithang. The new herbarium building at Serbithang was completed in 2002, with funding support from Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA). Currently, the herbarium houses more than 19,000 barcoded herbarium specimens of Angiosperms, Gymnosperms, Pteridophytes (+2000), Fungi, Lichens and Byrophytes (+850).
Contact: Rinchen Yangzom (ryangzom@moaf.gov.bt)
Collection Type: Preserved Specimens
Management: Live Data managed directly within data portal
Global Unique Identifier: d141f053-1a55-4a10-96e5-9d73b8c16d1d
Usage Rights: CC BY-NC (Attribution-Non-Commercial)
Rights Holder: Royal Government of Bhutan
Access Rights: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Address:
National Biodiversity Centre
National Herbarium
Post Box 875
Serbithang, Thimphu
Bhutan
Collection Statistics:
- 921 specimen records
- 904 (98%) georeferenced
- 1 (0.11%) with images
- 225 (24%) identified to species
- 82 families
- 161 genera
- 121 species
- 121 total taxa (including subsp. and var.)