The first data about the bryophytes on the territory of Estonia can be found in the book of J. B. Fischer from the year 1791. After that several bryofloristic works about the territory named at that time Ehst-, Liv- and Kurland, appeared. They contained much information about the present-day Estonia. The work of K. G. Girgensohn (1860) contained a list of 228 species collected from the territory of Estonia. One of the most famous bryologists from the previous century was E. Russow who worked as a professor of botany at Tartu University. His works in the field of sphagnology are world-famous. The bryofloristical work of the Latvian scientist N. Malta about the East Baltic region was also of great importance.
 

Marchantia polymorpha L. Common Liverwort	Leucobryum glaucum (Hedw.) Aongstr. Large White-moss	Polytrichum commune Hedw. Common Haircap

The ecological and bryosociological studies were started by T. Lippmaa (1933, 1935). He worked out a method of describing vegetation by one-layer communities (synusiae). Bryophyte communities played an important part in his works. J. Paal and K. Vellak (1994, 1999) have continued the research of moss synusiae with modern methods. The first key-books were written by L. Laasimer and her co-workers in the 1950’s. Since the 1960’s several papers about topics such as fertilization effects on the moss cover (Kalda & Kannukene 1966), pH-values of moss-substrata (Kannukene 1979), peat-moss growth increment (Ilomets 1982) and growth-forms and their relations to ecological factors (Vilde 1990) have appeared. The floristic work was mainly led by L. Kannukene who has issued thorough studies about the bryoflora of numerous areas in Estonia and in Russian arctic. The monitoring of bryophytes was started in 1981 by L. Kannukene, nowadays more than 20 bryophyte species are monitored in the course of a state program that began in 1994. In 1994, the list, and in 1998 the key-book of Estonian bryophytes were published as a collective work of several bryologists. The Red Data Book of Estonia (1998) contains a list of 199 bryophyte species. 46 species are under state protection since 2004. The updated number of bryophytes found on the territory of Estonia is 551. Since 1993, courses of bryology have been held at the University of Tartu and some plant sociological and ecological aspects of bryology were began to study as MSc or PhD projects.

The bryological research is done at four institutions in Estonia. At the Institute of Botany and Ecology of TU studies on the species richness of bryophytes and on bryoflora of Estonia are carried out.  At the Institute of Ecology of TPU the ecophysiology of mossses and the role of peatmosses in the development of bogs is studied. At the Estonian Museum of Natural History bryofloristical studies of different regions in Estonia are done.

References
Fischer, J. B. 1791. Versuch einer Naturgeschichte von Livland. Aufl. Göningsberg, 2: 1-854.
Girgensohn, G.K. 1860. Naturgeschichte der Laub- und Lebermoose Liv-, Ehst- und Kurlands. – Arch. Naturk. Liv-, Ehst- und Kurlands. 2 (2): 1-488.
Ilomets, M. 1982. The productivity of Sphagnum communities and the rate of peat accumulation in Estonian bogs. – Peatland ecosystems V.Masing (ed.), p. 102-117.
Kalda, A. and Kannukene, L. 1966. Muutused sammalkattes looduslike niitude pealtparandamisel. – ENSV TA toimetised. Biol. Seeria, 1: 46-60.
Kannukene, L. 1979. Moss species and their substrates. – In: Frey, T. (ed.) Spruce forest ecosystem structure and ecology 2. Basic data on the Estonian Vooremaa project pp. 7-16. 
Ingerpuu, N. 1998. Sammaltaimed (Bryophyta). – In: Lilleleht, V. (ed.) Eesti Punane Raamat. Tartu, 37-49.
Lippmaa, T. 1933. Taimeühingute uurimise metoodika ja Eesti taimeühingute klassifikatsiooni põhijooni. – Loodusuurijate Seltsi aruanded 40: 1-169.
Lippmaa, T. 1935. Une analyse des forêst de I’île Estonienne d’Abruka (Abro) sur la base des associations unistrates. – Acta et Comment. Univ. Tartuensis A 28-1: 1-97.
Paal, J. 1998. Plant communities meriting protection in Estonia. I. Their criteria and network of typical communities. II. Rare plant communities. - Estonia Maritima 3: 93-125.
Vellak, K. and Paal, J. 1999. Diversity of bryophyte vegetation in some forest types in Estonia: a comparison of old unmanaged and managed forests. - Biodiversity and Conservation. 8: 1595-1620 
Vilde, R. 1990. The distribution of the life forms of mosses conditioned by environmental conditions. – Novitates Systematicae Plantarum Non Vascularum 27: 128-140.