A synopsis of the Italian bryophyte vegetation

A compilation of the bryophyte syntaxa known to date from Italy is presented. The 135 associations and 28 subassociations are included in 19 alliances, 42 orders and 12 bryosociological classes. All the syntaxa reported were critically revised from the nomenclatural and syntaxonomical point of view. In the syntaxonomical scheme, for higher phytosociological units (classes, orders and alliances), the ecological features are summarized. The synonyms used in Italy and the characteristic and differential species of each syntaxon are also included. Finally, the distribution of each association and subassociation in the Italian administrative regions is given using the numerical references assigned to the corresponding bibliographic source in References.