Epiphytic lichen and moss vegetation along an altitude gradient on Mount Aenos (Kefallinia, Greece)

Epiphytic vegetation of lichens and mosses was investigated on trunks of Ab ies cephalonica on Mount Aenos, Kefallinia, Ionian Island (Greece). A simpl e sampling design involving a series of releves along decreasing altitude r evealed clear clinal pattern of floristic variation in the epiphytic flora. Species richness of both mosses and lichens were negatively correlated wit h the increase of altitude, suggesting that the cold-stressed top of the mo untain (and the frequency of fog precipitating on the top) play major role in the epiphytic community structuring even along a short altitude span of 200 m.