LICHEN SURVEYS FROM FIELD MEETINGS

British Camp Reservoir and environs

Habberley Valley and Wassall Wood area

Joy Ricketts

British Camp Reservoir, Malvern Hills 29 May 2004, SO766398

It is said that many hands make light work, it is certainly true that many pairs of eyes make for good lichen recordings as three lichenologists from Gloucestershire and one from Warwickshire joined in the fun.

Initially a brief shower slowed the first hour’s work as soon as the substrates had dried we were on our knees diligently searching amongst the British Camp reservoir environs. The granite chip path, short grassed banks, granite dam walls with linking culvert walls, concrete run-off channels, and concrete water tank covers were all examined.

The Gloucestershire visitors were delighted to see eight species of Cladonias, common here on Malvern’s acidic heaths, but an uncommon substrate in their county. The concrete covers to the water chambers were particular rewarding despite being liberally fertilised by sheep droppings. One large patch of Xanthoria elegans was worthy of being digitalised. Several large thalli of Placynthium nigrum were found. This has a beautiful navy-blue fringed edge to the black coralloid thallus neatly studded with small black apothecia. Nearby, were several small thalli of the rather scarce Aspicilia glaucocarpa and the more common Caloplaca variabilis. These species are usually found on basic stone in the south.

The native granite outcrops found on the lower slopes of Broad Down are well covered with both crustose and foliose lichens. Whilst gasping for breath and hanging on to a shaded overhang for dear life, Porina chlorotica was spotted, this proved later to be a county first.

The corticolous lichens found on ash, oak and sycamore in the wooded area to the north of the reservoir had the usual lichen assemblage including Hypotrachyna revoluta, and Parmotrema chinense. Flavoparmelia caperata, the bright apple green foliose lichen was not found on this occasion.

The list for both the British Camp Reservoir and Broad Downs include

  1. Acarospora fuscata
  2. Amandinea punctata
  3. Arthonia radiata
  4. Aspicilia calcarea
  5. Aspicilia contorta
  6. Aspicilia caesiocinera
  7. Baeomyces rufus
  8. Buellia aethalea
  9. Buellia ocellata
  10. Caloplaca citrina
  11. Caloplaca crenulatella
  12. Caloplaca flavescens
  13. Caloplaca teicholyta
  14. Caloplaca variabilis
  15. Candelariella reflexa
  16. Candelariella vitellina
  17. Cladonia cervicornis
  18. Cladonia chlorophaea
  19. Cladonia ciliata var. tenuis
  20. Cladonia diversa
  21. Cladonia fimbriata
  22. Cladonia foliacea
  23. Cladonia furcata
  24. Cladonia gracilis
  25. Cladonia ramulosa
  26. Collema tenax
  27. Evernia prunastri
  28. Fuscidea lightfootii
  29. Hypogymnia physodes
  30. Hypogymnia tubulosa
  31. Hypotrachyna revoluta
  32. Lecanora campestris
  33. Lecanora chlarotera
  34. Lecanora dispersa
  35. Lecanora muralis
  36. Lecanora polytropa
  37. Lecanora rupicola
  38. Lecanora soralifera
  39. Lecidea fuscoatra
  40. Lecidella stigmatea
  41. Lepraria incana
  42. Melanelia fuligenosa ssp fuligenosa
  43. Melanelia fuligenosa ssp. glabratula
  44. Melanelia subaurifera
  45. Micarea micrococca
  46. Parmelia saxatilis
  47. Parmelia sulcata
  48. Parmotrema chinense
  49. Peltigera hymenina
  50. Pertusaria corallina
  51. Pertusaria pseudocorallina
  52. Phaeophyscia orbicularis
  53. Phlyctis argena
  54. Physcia adscendens
  55. Physcia aipolia
  56. Physcia caesia
  57. Physcia tenella
  58. Placynthium nigrum
  59. Platismatia glauca
  60. Porina chlorotica
  61. Porpidia crustulata
  62. Porpidia soredizodes
  63. Porpidia tuberculosa
  64. Protoblastenia rupestris
  65. Psilolechia lucida
  66. Punctelia ulophylla
  67. Ramalina farinacea
  68. Rhizocarpon geographicum
  69. Rhizocarpon reductum
  70. Schismatomma decolorans
  71. Scoliciosporum umbrinum
  72. Trapelia coarctata
  73. Trapelia placodioides
  74. Usnea subfloridana
  75. Verrucaria nigrescens
  76. Xanthoria calcicola
  77. Xanthoria elegans
  78. Xanthoria parietina

Habberley Valley 3 July 2004 SO 802776

This outstanding site seems to have everything a lichenologist could wish for, several large sandstone outcrops, patches of acidic heath, wooden fence posts and many well-lit, neutral barked, deciduous trees. During this visit several sandstone outcrops including Pecketts Rock and Jacobs Ladder were examined together with their near-by-deciduous trees. Several luxuriant patches of Cladonia floerkeana, C. squamosa and C furcata were noted at the base of Pecketts rock. Stereocaulon evolutum, a very unusual find for this region, was found on one of the flat but sheltered outcrops along with large patches of Diploschistes scruposus. A further visit is planned to extend the recording area.

Species found on sandstone outcrops include

  1. Baeomyces rufus
  2. Candelariella vitellina
  3. Cladonia cervicornis
  4. Cladonia coniocraea
  5. Cladonia diversa
  6. Cladonia fimbriata
  7. Cladonia floerkeana
  8. Cladonia furcata
  9. Cladonia pyxidata
  10. Cladonia squamosa
  11. Diploschistes muscorum
  12. Diploschistes scruposus
  13. Lecanora expallens
  14. Lecanora gangaleoides
  15. Lecidea fuscoatra
  16. Lecidella scabra
  17. Lecidella stigmatea
  18. Lepraria incana
  19. Melanelia fuligenosa ssp. fuligenosa
  20. Pertusaria corallina
  21. Porina chlorotica
  22. Porpidia crustulata
  23. Porpidia tuberculosa
  24. Psilolechia lucida
  25. Scoliciosporum umbrinum
  26. Stereocaulon evolutum
  27. Tephromela atra
  28. Trapelia involuta
  29. Trapelia placodioides

 

Corticolous species found are

  1. Amandinea punctata
  2. Chaenotheca ferruginea
  3. Evernia prunastri
  4. Flavoparmelia caperata
  5. Fuscidea lightfootii
  6. Hypogymnia physodes
  7. Hypogymnia tubulosa
  8. Lecanora chlarotera
  9. Lecanora expallens
  10. Lecanora symmicta
  11. Melanelia subaurifera
  12. Micarea prasina
  13. Parmelia sulcata
  14. Parmotrema chinense
  15. Physcia adscendens
  16. Physcia tenella
  17. Platismatia glauca
  18. Punctelia subrudecta
  19. Punctelia ulophylla
  20. Ramalina farinacea
  21. Scoliciosporum chlorococcum
  22. Xanthoria parietina
  23. Xanthoria polycarpa
  24. Sandy Heaths
  25. Cetraria aculeatum
  26. Cladonia chlorophaea
  27. Cladonia ciliata var. tenuis
  28. Cladonia furcata
  29. Cladonia ramulosa
  30. Peltigera hymenina
  31. Fence posts
  32. Amandinea punctata
  33. Cladonia coniocraea
  34. Cladonia macilenta
  35. Lecanora saligna

Habberley Valley. 27 September 2004

Recorders: Peter W James (Natural History Museum) Cliff Smith and Joy Ricketts.

Mr James considers the Habberley Valley rocks to be very interesting with its own specialised flora through the rock’s water retentive properties and unique substrate chemistry.

The following additional species were found on the rocks

  1. Cladonia pyxidata
  2. Cladonia subulata
  3. Lepraria caesioalba
  4. Leproloma membranacea
  5. Porpidia cinereoatra
  6. Porpidia platycarpoides
  7. Rhizocarpon concentricum
  8. Trapelia coarctata
  9. Additional corticolous species include
  10. Bacidia adastra
  11. Dimerella pineti
  12. Hypocenomyce scalaris
  13. Parmeliopsis ambigua

On a tree stump

Trapeliopsis pseudogranulosa

Ash on the roadside of Habberley Lane. SO 795780

Ash bark favours lichen colonisation and development. The trunk was smothered with both crustose and foliose lichens. I was delighted to find Ochrolechia turneri this was last recorded by Francis Rose from the Wyre Forest in 1969.

Species found on this single Ash include

  1. Candelariella reflexa
  2. Chaenotheca ferruginea
  3. Evernia prunastri
  4. Flavoparmelia caperata
  5. Lecanora chlarotera
  6. Lecanora pulicaris
  7. Lepraria incana
  8. Ochrolechia turneri
  9. Parmelia saxatilis
  10. Parmelia sulcata
  11. Parmeliopsis ambigua
  12. Physcia adscendens
  13. Platismatia glauca
  14. Punctelia ulophylla
  15. Xanthoria parietina

 

A dead Alder by the pond at SO 796781 had Lecanora carpinea

Hoarstone Lane. Wooden railings and concrete posts. SO 794778

The weathered concrete posts and caps supported 15 different species of lichen. The weathered railings were also richly covered, particularly with foliose species, including Usnea subfloridana.

Wooden Railings Concrete posts

  1. Evernia prunastri Aspicilia contorta
  2. Flavoparmelia caperata Caloplaca holocarpa
  3. Hypogymnia physodes Caloplaca crenulatella
  4. Hypogymnia tubulosa Lecanora albescens
  5. Hypotrachyna revoluta Lecanora albescens
  6. Lecania cyrtella Lecanora campestris
  7. Lecanora chlarotera Lecanora dispersa
  8. Lecanora conizaeoides Lecanora muralis
  9. Lecanora symmicta Lecidella stigmatea
  10. Melanelia subaurifera Physcia caesia
  11. Parmelia saxatilis Verrucaria macrostoma f. furfuracea
  12. Parmelia sulcata Verrucaria nigrescens
  13. Physcia adscendens Xanthoria calcicola
  14. Placynthiella icmalea Xanthoria elegans
  15. Trapeliopsis flexuosa Xanthoria parietina
  16. Usnea subfloridana
  17. Xanthoria parietina

Wassall Wood 3 July 2004 SO 794775

Wassall Wood has a dense tree canopy and closely planted trees. Poorly lit-areas such as these result in an impoverished lichen flora. Recordings were only taken from those trees and logs found in the more open Earthworks area. Nothing of significance was found.

  1. Amandinea punctata
  2. Buellia griseovirens
  3. Chaenotheca ferruginea
  4. Cladonia coniocraea
  5. Cladonia fimbriata
  6. Fuscidea lightfootii
  7. Hypogymnia physodes
  8. Lecanora conizaeoides
  9. Lepraria incana
  10. Melanelia subaurifera
  11. Parmelia saxatilis
  12. Parmelia sulcata
  13. Parmeliopsis ambigua
  14. Physcia tenella
  15. Placynthiella icmalea
  16. Scoliciosporum chlorococcum
  17. Xanthoria parietina
  18. Xanthoria polycarpa