Despite harsh conditions provided by wave action, salinity, UV exposure, and other pressures, lichens provide most of the substrate cover in the rocky littoral zone. We documented the vertical zonation and general ecology of several littoral members of the lichenized ascomycete family Verrucariaceae from 7 sites along Nova Scotia’s Bay of Fundy coast. We identified lichens morphologically and confirmed species using ITS rDNA barcoding to provide novel biodiversity data. We documented 8 lichens … Read more... 

For the Altai Mountains’ region, especially the arid southeastern part of the Russian Altai, the data on glacier fluctuations in the Pleistocene and Holocene are still inconsistent. The study area was the Kargy River’s valley (2288–2387 m a.s.l.), a location that is not currently affected by glaciation and the glacial history of which is poorly studied. Field observations and geomorphological mapping were used to reveal the configuration of Pleistocene moraines. The relative dating method … Read more... 

[in Russian with English summary: ] Tholurna dissimilis, a rare corticolous dwarf fruticose lichen with a specific ecology, was discovered in Russia for the first time since 1936 in the Sallatunturi Ridge in the southwestern part of the Murmansk Region. Tholurna has a specialized ecology occurring in extremely exposed habitats, on decaying twigs in the uppermost parts of low spruce trees growing above the tree-line. Information on all early findings of T. dissimilis in the territory of Russia … Read more... 

Lichens are major components of high altitude/latitude ecosystems. However, accurately characterizing their biodiversity is challenging because these regions and habitats are often underexplored, there are numerous poorly known taxonomic groups, and morphological variation in extreme environments can yield conflicting interpretations. Using an iterative taxonomic approach based on over 800 specimens and incorporating both traditional morphology-based identifications and information from the … Read more... 

Lichens are slow-growing niche-constructing organisms that form a thallus via scripted symbiotic/mutualist relationships between fungi, algae, and bacteria. Here we use quick-freeze deep-etch electron microscopy (QFDEEM) to document the ultrastructure of the eukaryotic organisms and the extracellular matrix materials that are found in four lichens. Previous studies have shown that each thallus in a complex lichen consists of a central medullary layer containing aligned fungal hyphae. These medullary … Read more...