Regional concentration levels of vanadium, aluminium and bromine in mosses and lichens

Abstract

Concentrations of V, Al and Br determined by neutron activation analysis showed significant interspecies differences: the epiphytic lichen Hypogymnia physodes had consistently higher elemental concentrations than the peat moss Sphagnum fuscum or the terricolous lichen Cladonia sylvatica collected from the same sites. A regional survey with the latter two species indicated a distinct decrease of V and Al levels from south to north Finland. A large-scale survey with Sphagnum mosses showed relatively low levels of vanadium in remote areas of Scandinavia, but somewhat elevated concentrations of V e.g. in samples from Leningrad region, northern Germany, Wales and northeastern U.S.A.