😍 Great to see some lichen love from April Windle of the @britishlichensociety.org.uk, plus our own Bill Bealey explaining how our LicheN app is used for measuring sensitivity to nitrogen pollution Featured on BBC News ⤵️ www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... 🧪

Enjoyable Saturday in the woods near Tilberthwaite with Cumbria Lichen and Bryophyte Group. Lots of good acid bark stuff including (everybody's) favourites Cetrelia olivetorum; Hypotrachyna laevigata and Bunodophoron melanocarpum. #LichenGBI

From the NHS to our energy grid, we are too reliant on US tech. Sign the petition to stop Trump's kill switch and demand digital independence: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/st...

Hear from Scot ex-diplomat Craig Murray independent journalist in Venezuela - seems very normal, with no shortages, no repression and good 4G! "Pretty well everything that I have read by Western journalists...turns out to be an absolute lie" www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/202... gofund.me/e98247481

Some more lichens from Knapdale today: Pectenia plumbea s. str., Lobaria pulmonaria on rock, Lobarina scrobiculata + Sticta limbata and Bunodophoron melanocarpum. #LichenGBI

Some tiny lichens in Knapdale: Porina multipuncta, Pyrrhospora quernea, Snippocia nivea and Parmeliella parvula. #LichenGBI

Does Parmotrema crinitum have fruit like this? Or is it an LF? #LichenGBI

The next star lichen find is Menegazzia terebrata on a north-facing damp rock outcrop with perforations in the lobes and soralia at the lobe ends. #LichenGBI

One of our star lichen finds today in Knapdale was Pseudocyphellaria citrina (Yellow specklebelly) with lots on one willow and some on some nearby rocks. The yellow colour somewhat dulled perhaps due to being wet. #LichenGBI

Today we visited the woods at Ardminish south of Loch Stornoway in Knapdale - some lovely 'temperate rainforest' but spoiled by rhododendron that's already spreading badly. In 10/20 years much lichen, bryophyte, fungi and flora will be lost. Spread from nearby gardens and big houses. #LichenGBI

My photos of Wilson's Filmy-fern (Hymenophyllum wilsonii) today at Knapdale aren't as clear as yesterday's Tunbridge, but they do show the slightly different green, curled down fronds and untoothed sporangia.

In Knapdale today, this lichen might be Parmotrema pseudoreticulatum with a fine network of lines on the upper surface. No rhizines at the underside edge. #LichenGBI

In Knapdale today was Tunbridge Filmy-fern (Hymenophyllum tunbrigense) - pale green and flat jizz, with jagged sporangia indusia.

We're in Knapdale for the week to explore the scattered oceanic woodlands and coastal rocks for lichens, starting with Cetrelia olivetorum, Leptogium cyanescens and Pannaria rubiginosa. #LichensGBI

I'm starting to organise our seemingly extensive lichen herbarium into boxes with home made cardboard dividers. I'm going to need to buy some more boots! #LichenGBI

More lichens from the dry-stone walls, ash and hazel trees of Swindale: Physcia tribacia, Normandina chlorococca, Peltigera horizontalis and Pertusaria pertusa. #LichenGBI

In Swindale yesterday was a young Spring hazelcup (Encoelia furfuracea) fungus with a pale brown scurfy external surface. The inside opens up to release spores from the inner surface. #BBCSpringwatch #BBCwinterwatch @bbcspringwatch.bsky.social

Also in Swindale on a siliceous rock outcrop was Psilolechia lucida lichen, a bright-light-green that glows orange in UV, with rare pale orange apothecia. #LichenGBI

Just beside the last sighting on hazel was Arthopyrenia cerasi, similar to A analepta but with 3-septate spores. It has separate perithecia, not a stroma. The asci are cylindrical, biseriate and the spores are 3-septate. Interascal strands visible, probably anastomosed pseudoparaphyses. #LichenGBI

Yesterday in Swindale, Caz spotted these flattened black patches on hazel bark - but lumpy when viewed close up. This is lichen Tomasellia gelatinosa with each patch a stroma containing multiple perithecia-like locales with 3-septate spores inside. #LichenGBI

UK OFFICIAL: HIGH confidence: * Global ecosystem degradation and collapse threaten UK national security and prosperity * Ecosystem degradation is occurring across all regions. Every critical ecosystem is on a pathway to collapse www.gov.uk/government/p...

On an oak from near Haweswater was Bacidia rubella with small but not tiny granules for the thallus, pale-red-brown apothecia with margin, thin acicular spores, a relatively tall hymenium and a largely colourless section. But Bacidia/Bacidina are always tricky. #LichenGBI

We also found Mycobilimbia sphaeroides lichen at the base of an ash lower down the slope in Naddle Forest at Haweswater. The ash also has other nice lichens including a small amount of Parmeliella thriptophylla. #LichenGBI

We also checked out a known fallen ash tree at Haweswater which has dying Lobaria pulmonaria lichen on the stump and fallen trunk. Good to refind several patches of very small fruit of Scytinium subtile jelly on the ash lignum. #LichenGBI @britishlichensociety.org.uk @wildhaweswater.bsky.social

Checked on some more Lobaria pulmonaria lichen translocations today: the same mixture of some good ones, some OK and a few failed or near-as. #LichenGBI

Out near Haweswater today, an ash tree still has existing Lobaria pulmonaria thalli, much the same size as 2020, but the Peltigera hortizontalis lichen has expanded greatly since then. Unfortunately the ash won't survive forever. #LichenGBI

Checking Lobaria pulmonaria translocations today we were accompanied to a robin for some of the route. Can you spot the two nice looking lichen translocations? #LichenGBI

To show some good progress on the Lobaria pulmonaria translocations: this instance in Naddle Forest Haweswater was done in March 2021. The photos show it after 1.5 years and 4.5 years, with mesh removed. It's attached and grown with upturning outer lobes. #LichenGBI @britishlichensociety.org.uk

In early 2021 we did translocations of Lobaria pulmonaria lichen onto 80 trees in the Haweswater area from a donor tree at Naddle which had a bough break off in storms of early 2020. We're checking them all + removing mesh+staples. @britishlichensociety.org.uk #LichenGBI @wildhaweswater.bsky.social

Peltigera leucophlebia lichen is always lovely to see on limestone pavement at Knipe Scar with unmistakeable green lobes and pale underside edges often curved back over. Zooming in, it has rounded cephalodia on the upper surface and bushy rhizines and dark flat veins underneath in centre. #LichenGBI

I'm glad to helped out a little on this lichen survey last year at Watendlath for the @nationaltrust.org.uk and @britishlichensociety.org.uk - #LichenGBI cumbriacrack.com/2026/01/01/r...

The lichen genus Protoblastenia mushrooms in Finland: "... based on morphology and molecular data (nuITS rDNA sequences). 20 species were recognised, with 16 species being newly described here..." Sure to be found in N Am and elsewhere... mycokeys.pensoft.net/article/162802 (Pykälä & Myllys 2025)

I've signed Naturalists for Palestine... naturalistsforpalestine.org

Great intro to two remnants of Scotland's Caledonian Forest in the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park: Glen Falloch and Coille Coire Chailc with a brief shot of Platismatia glauca. These woods need to be allowed to regenerate and join up. www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSDV...

At RGBE, "E" herbarium there is a searchable database of some of their specimens, which includes a Fissurina alboscripta specimen that we collected in 2019 from Assynt. #LichenGBI data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E01002151

As some light relief we were given a tour of the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh (RBGE) herbarium "E" by Assistant Herbarium Curator (Cryptogams) Heleen Plaisier. We had an intro on how specimens are stored and how they can be accessed. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI data.rbge.org.uk/search/herba...

Eric then shared his PhD work on the Poeltinula hochstetteri complex which could be split into an s.str. etc. We looked at a couple of samples and saw differences in the observed features which might show to different species. Our razor blades were seeing cutting edge stuff! #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

Stretching our brains, Einar discussed the various techniques that they have used in Oslo to analyse the DNA sequences that they've seen. Various tools help build putative taxonomic trees, grouping specimens together into clades that may or may not represent (new) species. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

John Douglass looked at our specimen of Rhizocarpon geminatum. However he re-determined it as Rhizocarpon subgeminatum as the epiithecium was green, the spores were colourless (except over-mature ones), the spores were small and has more than two spores per ascus. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

The colour of the epithecium and whether it changes colour in KOH can be an important indicator - if you can see it. I think the options are a K- dark epithecium and green upper hymenium - or a dark epithecium which goes slight red in K. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

Looking at Rhizocarpon spores will be of great help to get something to species. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

Back on day one of the Rhizocarpon course, it was demonstrated that testing the medulla with KI was a good test for these genera. Some species show an amyloid I+blue reaction. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyloid...

On yellow map lichens Mike Haldeman gave a great talk from North America, heroically early in the morning before work. Mike had been looking at the Rhizocarpon geographicum group, an extremely polymorphic and still poorly understood species complex. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI @brucemccune.bsky.social

We were very pleased to be able to have a look at three separate Rhizocarpon alpicola specimens as we had been looking for this in Langdale. The specimens varied quite a bit and only a few areoles exhibited the classic eyeball of an apothecium surrounded by one areole. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

When looking at the yellow-green Rhizocarpon species the arrangement of the areoles and apothecia is important. (Click for more) But these characters are not clear. There are other things to look for eg R alpicola has 1-septate spores.#Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI claude.ai/public/artif...

For #Rhizocarpon the apothecia arise from the hypothallus, not from areoles. Apothecia may look as though they are sat on an areole, but they aren't. Apothecia are surrounded by areoles, providing energy to make the fruit. I need to do a vertical section to prove this. #LichenGBI

The most common UK Rhizocarpon is R. reductum now called Rehmia reducta. It's got a grey to brown, cracked areolate thallus, rough disc, small muriform ascospores and usually K+ yellow, Pd+ orange colour reactions. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

In the UK, Rhizocarpon geographicum is ubiquitous in the uplands on siliceous rocks with its multiple yellow-green thalli with dark edges giving it its common name "map lichen". There are other yellow-green species but R geog always has angular areoles around fruit. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI

Here's a list of the Rhizocarpaceae name changes affecting the UK, including an earlier Rhizocarpon oederi change. Perhaps Poeltinula cerebrina needs moving from Poeltinula???! #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI claude.ai/public/artif...

The Rhizocarpaceae genus changes can be summarised in this diagram, with Epilichen scabrosa becoming Catolechia scabrosa and Rhizocarpon splitting into Rhizocarpon, Rehmia and Poeltinula. #Rhizocarpon #LichenGBI claude.ai/public/artif...