Excursion into the world of mosses

The Wilhelmsdorf Nature Conservation Center invites you to a guided tour led by moss specialist Alfons Schäfer-Verwimp. Sphagnum mosses are the “building blocks” of raised bogs, but many other types of moss also grow in the wild marshland of the Pfrunger-Burgweiler Ried. They are beautiful to look at, but not easy to identify. For many years, tour guide Alfons Schäfer-Verwimp has been documenting the native plants in the Pfrunger-Burgweiler Ried and other areas—plants that reproduce via spores rather than flowers. Recent research shows that mosses are the oldest land plants of all. They colonized the mainland long before flowering plants—and even before ferns—and have developed a series of adaptations to life on land that benefited the ferns and flowering plants that evolved from mosses. Join us on this guided tour to explore the microcosm of “Sparrigen Runzelpeters,” “Goldenen Frauenhaarmoosse,” or the sphagnum mosses, which, as the building blocks of the raised bog, can store up to 30 times their mass in water and outcompete other plants through their metabolism. If you have a magnifying glass, feel free to bring it along. Long pants, sturdy shoes, and mosquito and sunscreen protection are recommended. **Registration by September 25** via the contact form at [www.pfrunger-burgweiler-ried.de](https://pfrunger-burgweiler-ried.de) is required.