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Finding moss is easy.
Understanding where it grows, how it changes, and what makes one patch different from another takes observation.
The Moss Investigation & Discovery Kit is a complete outdoor field kit for children, families, students, and beginner naturalists who want to investigate real moss sites without collecting, scraping, or damaging them.
Choose a moss patch. Give the site a field name. Record what it is growing on. Measure the patch. Examine its structure with a field lens. Map its location. Look for sporophytes and capsules. Record moisture, shade, and habitat conditions. Then return later and discover what has changed.
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• 12-page Moss Investigation Field Guide
• 50-page permanent Moss Field Record Book
• Common Moss Types Quick Reference Sheet
• 12 Moss Site Investigation Certificates
• Field compass
• Portable carrying case
• 10× folding field hand lens
• Pencil
• Pencil sharpener
• 30 cm / 12 in field ruler
• Measuring tape
• 1 Moss Site Register
• 12 Moss Site Surveys
• 12 Moss Site Maps
• 12 Patch Detail & Survey-Square Records
• 12 Moss Site Return Records — 3 return visits per site
Record:
• Patch size and shape
• Growth form
• Colour and visible structure
• Moss substrate
• Shade and sunlight
• Moisture conditions
• Sporophytes and capsules
• Habitat conditions
• Survey-square coverage
• Changes between visits
• Seasonal changes
• Possible, probable, and uncertain identifications
The kit encourages investigators to separate what they actually observe from what they only suspect.
A moss site can be given its own permanent field name and site code, even when the species has not yet been identified.
Scientific identification is recorded separately as:
Not Identified • Uncertain • Probable • Confirmed
At first, many mosses simply look like patches of green.
A 10× field hand lens reveals an entirely different world.
Investigators can look for:
• Upright or creeping shoots
• Branching patterns
• Fine or coarse textures
• Pointed or rounded tips
• Dense cushions and spreading carpets
• Hair-like points
• Differences between wet and dry moss
• Sporophyte stalks
• Capsule shapes and colours
Not every moss can be confidently identified in the field.
Uncertain is a valid result.
A moss site may be a tiny patch on a stone, a cushion growing on a stump, a carpet covering fallen wood, or a large moss-covered bank.
Give each site a field name:
Map its location carefully enough that you can find the same site again.
Large moss sites do not need to fit inside the survey frame. Map the whole visible site, then use the 20 × 20 cm survey frame to study a defined section of the moss in greater detail.
The real discovery often happens when you return.
A patch may appear wetter or drier. Capsules may emerge. Colour may change. Nearby vegetation may grow or disappear. Shade conditions may change.
A patch may appear larger, smaller, or almost unchanged.
Winter observations count too.
The kit is designed so investigators can build a record of a living moss site over time rather than simply identifying moss once and moving on.
This is not a moss-collecting kit.
Do not pull up moss, scrape it from surfaces, peel bark, break rotten wood, move stones unnecessarily, press equipment into the moss, or remove specimens for identification.
Place the survey frame gently around or above the moss whenever possible.
A good investigation leaves the moss exactly where it was found.
Ages 8+Adult supervision recommended.
The Moss Investigation & Discovery Kit is now entering its first production run.
Preorders soon available.
Estimated Price: $45-55 CAD
Rigger & Trigger Toys And Games Ltd.
Below are real Moss Sites registered while developing and field-testing the Moss Kit.
Each site has its own moss growth, surfaces, moisture conditions, surrounding habitat and discoveries.
Explore the sites, follow what has been observed and see how each one changes through the seasons.
Then find a Moss Site of your own.
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GREEN BOULDER — MOSS SITE No. 1
Green Boulder is a large moss- and lichen-covered boulder located near the North River Ant Colony in New Germany, Nova Scotia.
The boulder sits within the same rugged network of giant stones, old stumps, fallen wood, roots, and underground spaces that forms part of the North River colony's wider nest landscape.
Unlike a single clean moss patch, Green Boulder appears to contain several separate areas of moss growing across different parts of the rock, mixed among extensive lichen cover.
Some areas are exposed while others are more sheltered, creating several small environments across the same boulder.
The first investigation will focus on determining:
No species identification has yet been confirmed.
STATUS: INITIAL INVESTIGATION
OBSERVE. RECORD. RETURN. DISCOVER WHAT CHANGES.
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GREEN GULLEY — MOSS SITE No. 2
Hidden in the woods of Cherryfield, Nova Scotia, near a large stream, Green Gulley is a remarkable moss-covered landscape built around giant boulders, rock channels, tree roots and shaded forest floor.
Thick carpets of moss spread across the rocks and into the narrow gullies between them, creating dozens of small microhabitats with different levels of shade, moisture and shelter. Fungi, lichens, ferns and other woodland life were also found growing throughout the site.
During the first investigation, several different moss forms were recorded along with a variety of mushrooms and fungi. One solitary large dark ant was also spotted moving through the moss, but no other ants could be found within approximately 20 feet of the observation point.
Green Gulley will now become a return-visit moss site, allowing us to map the moss, compare different growing areas and watch how this beautiful woodland habitat changes over time.
OBSERVE. RECORD. RETURN. DISCOVER WHAT CHANGES.
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QUARRY STONE — MOSS SITE No. 3
Found under the bridge in New Germany, Nova Scotia, Quarry Stone is a large worked stone slab that has slowly developed its own patchwork of moss and pale lichen.
Unlike the natural boulders found at our other moss sites, this flat quarried surface creates a very different habitat. Thick moss cushions occupy some areas while other sections remain thin, lichen-covered or completely exposed. Changes in sunlight, moisture and the shape of the stone appear to create several distinct growing zones across a single surface.
Quarry Stone will be revisited to map these different moss patches, compare their growth and watch how this small stone habitat changes through the seasons.
OBSERVE. RECORD. RETURN. DISCOVER WHAT CHANGES.
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Black Falls Cascade is a dramatic waterfall moss site where flowing water, spray, shade, and exposed rock create several distinct growing zones. Moss can be found on soaked boulders, damp ledges, and calmer stream-edge stones, making this an excellent place to compare how constant moisture and changing water levels affect growth.
Future visits will focus on mapping the moss-covered rocks, comparing wet and drier areas, and documenting how the site changes with different flow conditions.
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