Dermatocarpon, a saxicolous lichen, is common throughout the Ozarks Highlands of North America where exposed rock is abundant. Dermatocarpon is an understudied genus. Species delimitation is difficult because of a paucity of morphological characters and a large degree of variation within this genus. The taxonomy of Dermatocarpon in North America was recently thrown into flux because of a molecular study which limited the use of a once widely applied name, D. miniatum. The Melzer's reagent test, currently used for identifying members of the miniatum-complex in North America, is not useful for identifying Ozark specimens. A revision of Dermatocarpon for the Ozark Highlands of North America is presented based on morphological, molecular and ecological studies. The results of these studies indicate that eight taxa are present in the Ozarks. Four taxa are described new to science: D. arenosaxi, D. dolomiticum, D. luridum var. xerophilum and D. multifolium.

The state of Querétaro, Mexico is at the confluence of three physiographic provinces: Transmexican Volcanic Belt, Mexican Plateau and Sierra Madre Oriental. A list of its mosses has been compiled from field work and specimens at mexu. A total of 212 species were recorded for the state, including Schistidium agassizii new for the country. The Sierra Madre Oriental province is the richest in terms of number of species, with about 82% of the total moss diversity. A parsimony analysis of endemism (PAE) roughly identified three distinct regions in the state: the conifer-cloud-temperate forests in the northeast (Sierra Madre Oriental), the more xeric parts in the center and southeast (Mexican Plateau and ecotone areas of the Transmexican Volcanic Belt), and the almost temperate areas in the south (Transmexican Volcanic Belt). Moss diversity and distribution in the state is associated with the environmental diversity and the complex geological history of the region, but human activities may have modified the distributional patterns.

Here we present a preliminary checklist of the lichens of Gorges State Park, North Carolina, and describe Gyalectidium appendiculatum, a foliicolous lichen species new to science. Gorges State Park and the surrounding region encompasses a series of north- to south-facing drainages characterized by steep slopes and abrupt elevational changes, high levels of rainfall, and year-round moderate temperatures. The gorges harbor several rare and endemic taxa. This survey represents the first attempt to describe the lichen diversity of this region. We collected 441 specimens that yielded a total of 218 species. Using Jaccard indices, we calculated species composition similarities between Gorges State Park and three additional sites in North Carolina (two other mountain checklists and one coastal plain). Comparisons among the three mountain sites resulted in the highest similarity indices. However, Gorges State Park had more affinities to the coastal plain flora than did either of the other two mountain sites. These data contribute new information about eastern North American lichens as well as add to the growing documentation of the extraordinary and unique biological composition of the western North Carolina gorges. Future research on the lichen flora of Gorges State Park will undoubtedly lead to new discoveries.

We sought to assess impacts of fire and grazing by reindeer and caribou on lichen communities in northwestern Alaska. Macrolichen abundance was estimated from 45, 0.38-ha plots. Eighteen of those plots, scattered throughout the southern Seward Peninsula, represented two levels of grazing, heavy and light. We found lightly grazed areas had taller lichens and greater total lichen cover than heavily grazed sites. Minor yet statistically significant changes in community structure were also observed between heavily and lightly grazed sites. However, lichen species richness did not differ by grazing status. Overall, average lichen height appears to be the best indication of grazing intensity on the Seward Peninsula. Apart from the 18 grazing plots, 8 additional plots were established in previously burned sites to represent reference conditions with a known time since disturbance date. These plots provided a framework of vegetation recovery from severe, recent disturbance towards pre-disturbance conditions. Patterns in lichen, bryophyte and vascular plant characteristics from these fire plots in combination with our findings from the grazing plots were then used to interpret the disturbance history of new plots. These new plots comprise the remaining 19 plots (of the total 45) that were sampled within the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve (BELA). We believe the location of BELA, regardless of disturbance history, is more favorable to vascular plants and Sphagnum, and lichens grow taller in response, compared to areas on the Seward Peninsula further south. In addition, lower cover in the Preserve may be attributed to site or climatic differences rather than grazing.

Bryophyte metapopulations and the maintenance of bryophyte diversity heavily depend on species specific habitat and landscape characteristics. But the relationships between age structure of bryophyte populations, habitat characteristics and bryophyte diversity are not well known. We investigated the age structure of liverwort populations of Frullania dilatata, Metzgeria furcata and Radula complanata in relation to phorophyte preferences and epiphytic diversity of bryophytes and macrolichens. The results demonstrate that broad-leaved willow shrubs (primarily Salix caprea) are most preferred by these liverwort species and that these favorable phorophytes largely account for the coöccurrences of liverwort species in contrast to other phorophyte species. The liverworts show rather strongly aggregated distribution patterns. However, from ecotope level towards community level a change in association patterns occurs, suggesting that these species prefer similar habitats but occupy different microhabitats. The age distribution of the metapopulations is linked with the developmental stage of the habitats. The local frequency of the liverworts increases as the age of the population increases until the population is about 5–6 years. Also the suitability of habitats for these liverworts is temporally limited in the study area. After colonization of new habitats a lag phase of one year is hypothesized during which the species in general do not fully reproduce themselves.

Based on a study of 22 sites in northeastern Brazil, including the three main vegetation types, coastal Mata Atlântica (Zona da Mata), Caatinga and Brejos de Altitude (rain forest enclaves in Caatinga areas), we studied the distribution and habitat preferences of 456 crustose and microfoliose lichen species. Alpha-diversity ranged between three and 99 species per site, with Zona da Mata and Brejos de Altitude showing higher numbers than Caatinga sites. Beta-diversity (dissimilarity) was highest between Zona da Mata sites and, as a whole, the Zona da Mata showed the highest gamma-diversity, with a total of 334 species. Site ordination by non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMS), as well as cluster analysis, both using Sørensen's coefficient of dissimilarity, show that Zona da Mata and Caatinga sites have distinctive lichen species compositions, with the isolated Brejos de Altitude being more similar to coastal Zona da Mata than to Caatinga sites. Exposed Zona da Mata sites have certain species in common with Caatinga sites but overall cluster with the Zona da Mata sites. The transitional Agreste vegetation (one study site) also appears transitional between Zona da Mata and Caatinga in its lichen species composition. Indicator species analysis for each vegetation type was performed by applying a Monte-Carlo test. Other than ten ubiquitous taxa (found in all three vegetation types), 59 taxa were shared between Zona da Mata and Brejos de Altitude, 20 between Zona da Mata and Caatinga, and none between Brejos de Altitude and Caatinga. Dissimilarity values of Zona da Mata versus Brejos de Altitude sites were high (0.77 or 23% shared species on average), as were those of Zona da Mata versus Caatinga sites (average of 0.92 or 8% shared species). Zona da Mata lichens had a higher proportion of Arthoniomycetidae (Arthoniales: Arthoniaceae, Roccellaceae) and Chaetothyriomycetidae (Pyrenulales: Pyrenulaceae), as well as Porinaceae and Thelotremataceae; frequently trentepohlioid photobionts, predominantly transversely septate and/or narrow ascospores, and lack of lichen substances. Brejos de Altitude lichens showed a higher proportion of Dothideomycetiae (Trypetheliaceae) and Ostropomycetidae (Ostropales: Gomphillaceae and Graphidaceae), as well as Pilocarpaceae; ascospores were predominantly thick-walled or muriform and hyaline. Caatinga sites were dominated by Lecanoromycetidae (Lecanorales: Lecanoraceae; Teloschistales: Physciaceae) and Pertusariales (Pertusariaceae); taxa were chiefly associated with chlorococcoid photobionts, ascospores were megalosporous, non-septate and/or brown, and showed a predominance of certain cortical substances (atranorin, lichexanthone other xanthones, pulvinic acid derivates), as well as norstictic acid as medullary substance.

Chiloscyphus anisolobus J. J. Engel & Glenny, a new member of the Lophocoleaceae, is described and illustrated from New Zealand. Chiloscyphus anisolobus J. J. Engel & Glenny shares the possession of a dorsal leaf free strip and strongly anisophyllous habit with the Australian C. excisifolius, but is distinct from that species in the accessory armature of its leaves, wherein the ventral margin often has a dentiform to lobuliform process in the distal sector, the leaves thus appearing trifid; the shorter leaf lobes terminating in a single cell or a uniseriate row of 2–3(–4) cells; and the shorter underleaf lobes terminating in a single cell or a uniseriate row of 2–3(–4) cells.

The lichen Buellia japonica is reported for the first time from North America based on collections from Gorges State Park, North Carolina. A description of the species is provided and its generic placement is discussed.

Anthracocarpon andinum, a new terricolous species, is described from northern Argentina. The most important differences from A. virescens (Zahlbr.) Breuss are in thallus morphology and size and shape of the ascospores. Anthracocarpon andinum develops a squamulose thallus covered by a sulcate epinecral layer. The squamules of A. virescens are smaller, thinner and covered by a thin and continuous epinecral layer. In addition, A. andinum has paler rhizines than A. virescens. Thallus thickness, spore width and length/width ratio of ascospores are significantly different for the two species.