Sphagnum erect, leafy, branched gametophyte with chlorophyllose cells and hyaline cells. This stage dominates the environment where "Sphagnum" grows, obliterating and burying the protonema and eventually building up into layers of dead moss called peat. Carpets of living "Sphagnum" may be attacked by various fungi, and one fungus that is also a mushroom, "Sphagnurus paluster", produces conspicuous dead patches. When this fungus and other agarics attack the protonema, "Sphagnum" is induced to produce nonphotosynthetic gemmae that can survive the fungal attack and months later germinate to produce new protonema and leafy gametophytes. It is unknown whether the leafy stage can produce
Geochemistry of carbon requirements, but unless the sea level is rising will not have a chance to accumulate much. Coral reefs are very productive, but are well oxygenated, and recycle everything before it is buried. In dead "Sphagnum", sphagnan a polysaccharide with D-lyxo-5-hexosulouronic acid is a major remaining substance. It make the bog very acidic, so that bacteria cannot grow. Not only that, the plant ensures there is no available nitrogen. Holocellulose also absorbs any digestive enzymes around. Together this leads to major accumulation of peat under sphagnum bogs. Earth's mantle is a significant reservoir of carbon. The mantle contains more carbon than