5 - 6 lichen species, ID help please

[Monkey Orchid]

Hi, all.

I am trying to get familiar with commoner lichens in a local site (Thatcham Reedbeds, west Berkshire), partly as a result of the OPAL air pollution (lichens) survey that is currently running.

I've photographed a few of what seem to be commonest species around part of the site and have spent a few hours looking at images and descriptions on various websites. I've come up with some (hopefully not too way out) tries at identification... Would appreciate confirmation / correction on these. Apologies that one or two of the images are a bit blurry (slightly wobbly position up in a tree whilst taking photos!).

1. Xanthoria sp?


2.Ramalina sp?


3. Physcia sp?



4. Parmelia sulcata?


5. Parmelia sp?


6. Parmelia sp?



7. Unidentified sp, growing on concrete bench



8. Lecanora sp and Physcia sp?


9. Lecanora sp and Candelariella sp?



10. Amandinea punctata and Lecanora sp?


Thanks in advance for any help.

[poschiavanus]

It would help to know what the substrate is for each photo (although fence posts and some tree bark are fairly obvious).

There are a lot more than 5-6 lichens in these photos. Can' t comment on them all, but here goes anyway.

1. Yes, Xanthoria parietina.

2. Looks like possibly two Ramalina species. On the left R. fastigiata with characteristic rounded apothecia, and I suspect on the R the most common one R. fraxinea. Bottom RH corner lots of Parmelia sulcata. Above the LH Ramalina a small grey lichen with spiky ends of the lobes, and behind that a brown foliose lichen, perhaps Melanellia fulginosa ssp. grabratula.

3. Ramalina fraxinea.

4. Physcia adscendens. One of the two common ones usually without apothecia (fruits). P. tenella has the ends of the lobes turned back and covered with soredia: it tends to look rather felted when present en mass.

5. Yes, Parmelia sulcata. Lots of characteristic whitish ridges, called pseudocephalodia where the algal partner of the lichen is missing in the thallus. The centre of the thallus is much more sorediate than I'm used to seeing.

6. As above.

7. Can't place this one. Thallus colour doesn't look right for Parmelia sulcata, and my impression is that the thallus is wrinkled. Also there is P. sulcata in top left and the colour difference is obvious. Lecanora chlarotera, bottom left.

8. Never did get to grips with stone / concrete substrates. So can't help much.

9. Agreed, but think you have two Physcia, adscendens in the middle of image and tenella to left. May be more than one Lecanora too.

10. At least five species here, possibly six. The Lecanora has obvious an obvious lobate margin, so might be muralis, but don't know if the substrate fits. Dispersed orangey-yellow apothecia likely to be Candelariella as you say. There are a couple of patches of black fruits of a lichen with an immersed thallus, a patch of grey lichen (top left) and some orangey fruits which probably don't belong to it. Also in various places small patches of a grey crustose lichen split into small aereoles.

HTH,

Posch

[JennyS]

Hi Monkey, hope I get these in the right order as there are quite a few to keep track of!

1. Yes, Xanthoria parietina
2. First photo Ramalina fastigiata, second photo also a Ramalina, not sure which
3. Yes, either P. adscendens or P. tenella
4. Yes
5. Parmelia sulcata
6. Is the colour in the photo accurate and have you any more photos?
7. Physcia caesia
8. Lecanora chlarotera and Physcia tenella
9. Lecanora muralis but you'd need to test with a bit of K to tell whether the other is a Candelariella or a Caloplaca
10. Probably Lecidella elaeochroma and Lecanora chlarotera. Amandinea punctata usually has a whiter thallus.

Lecidella elaeochroma:
Irish lichens - Lecidella elaeochroma

Well done with naming those!
Jenny

[JennyS]

Photo 6. keeps bugging me!

Its not a species I've seen but Cetrelia olivetorum could be a possibility, if the habitat fits Dobson's description below:
"Infrequent, on mossy acid-barked trees in damp but usually well-lit woodlands and Salix carr."

[Monkey Orchid]

Thank you very much for your help!

I'm not sure exactly what substrate all of these were growing on. From memory, the majority of those growing on bark were found on sycamore, although the site I was looking at also had oak and willow.

These photos were taken on an initial (cursory) survey of the site, whilst walking around a lake. I wanted to make a start at getting a feel for what lichens might be around, before I started looking at the OPAL survey in detail.

The lichens chosen by OPAL for the survey are:

Usnea, Evernia, Hypogymnia
Melanelixia, Flavoparmelia, Parmelia
Leafy Xanthoria, Cushion Xanthoria, Physcia


Any tips on these species - i.e. likely substrates, distinguishing ID features? (This survey is intended to be carried out with school groups, so I'm basically looking for pointers that will help me - and the kids - identify stuff reasonably reliably.)

Thanks again.

MO

[poschiavanus]

Correction: I said Ramalina fraxinea, and I meant R. farinacea. Sorry.

If you have a decent local library they may have a copy of Crawley's "Flora of Berkshire", which has a recent (2005) listing of Berkshire lichens. This does not list Cetrelia olivetorum as having been recorded in Berkshire.

Oh dear. OPAL have been using invented names! I guess leafy Xanthoria is X. parietina and cushion Xanthoria is X. polycarpa, but I don't know. I now know why fungus folk complain about it.

Anyway, you have most of the ones for the survey. If there are Ramalina sp. there should be plenty of Evernia. Similar in appearance but the two sides of the thallus have different colours. I'd also expect Flavoparmelia and Hypogymnia in this environment. I'd think Usnea is unlikely. Melanelix is the newest name for Melanellia.

You may find Elder branches are covered with Xanthoria and Physcia. It's also worth looking out for any patches of Blackthorn, and the recent bad weather may have brought down twigs and branches from Willows and Hawthorn which may be lichen rich (found some really nice bits of the latter in Maidenhead Thicket last week). It's worth collecting some of the latter as the lichens can be stored dry (e.g., in ungummed envelopes) and used for teaching and as a reference: they wont survive once out of the sun.

[Monkey Orchid]

Cheers, poschiavanus. I will definitely keep on looking as I visit the site, and see if I can improve my lichen field skills.

The idea of collecting some specimens for reference is a good one... I think that I may start putting together a photo ID guide resource as well.

I was up on Greenham Common last week and saw carpets of lichen, so much in places the ground was white. It is amazing stuff. Looking forward to learning more about it!

Thanks again for your help,
MO

[JennyS]

saw carpets of lichen, so much in places the ground was white

That sounds like one of the Cladonia's .....

[AlanS]

I think photograph 4 is actually Parmelia saxatilis, rather than P. sulcata.

It is quite common on old, worked wood, and on rather acidic tree trunks, as well as on rocks, and easily confused with P. sulcata in these situations. It has isidia (peg-like projections with a skin) rather than soredia (powdery granules), though a lens is needed to tell the difference. P. saxatilis is commonly densely isidiate in the centre of the thallus, as seems to be the case here.

Photo 6 - er, yes ...
Like Jenny, I have never seen Cetrelia olivetorum, but it does look possible, despite the unlikely geography. If only we had a close-up! It should certainly be followed up.

I agree with Jenny on the rest.

Alan

[AlanS]

CORRECTION

Just too late (by about 5 minutes to edit my previous reply).

The penny has dropped re photograph 6.

It is not Cetrelia.

It is Pleurosticta acetabulum, which is precisely this colour when damp - very good match to 'Wirth' (key German book) volume 2, page 638.

A good find of what is now a rare and decreasing species.

Alan