Latrobe Valley Field Naturalists’ Club - September 2026

Invertebrates making use of invasive mosses

Moss bed
Pseudoscleropodium purum  Credit: LVFNC

On Friday September 18, the Latrobe Valley Field Naturalists’ Club will host a talk by club member and ecologist Emily Crick. Em will talk about her research which is focused on understanding how non-native plant expansions reshape local food webs. The study highlights that while invasive mosses disrupt native flora, they simultaneously serve as highly functional, novel microhabitats for a diverse community of native and introduced invertebrates.

Em’s talk covered:

  • Ecological Impacts and Interactions;
  • Novel Microhabitats: Invasive moss carpets offer damp microclimates that ground-dwelling invertebrates use for shelter and moisture retention;
  • Habitat Disruption: While individual bugs may co-opt the moss, the spread of exotic mosses tends to displace native groundcovers and alter natural forest regeneration;
  • Food Web Shifts: Changes in understory plant composition directly affect local invertebrate assemblages, subsequently impacting predators that rely on native ground bugs.

If you are interested in this topic you are welcome to join Field Naturalist club members at Moe Library meeting rooms, 7.30pm on Friday September 18. The presentation will also be streamed online - please contact the club for the link. Email info@lvfieldnats.org or phone or text the secretary Rose on 0410 237 292

On Saturday September 19, there will be a club excursion to Edward Hunter Bush Heritage Reserve, Moe, from 10:00?am to 2:00?pm. Our Friday night speaker, Emily Crick, knows this reserve very well and can show us the species of moss referred to in her presentation. The reserve is one of the Latrobe Valley’s largest remaining patches of remnant vegetation. On the urban fringe of Moe, it is rich in birdlife and wildflowers, especially native orchids. Bring cut lunch, refreshments and a folding chair. Meet in the car park, 116 Coalville Road, or contact the secretary Rose for carpool options from Moe Railway Station, ph 0410 237 292.