Acarospora sinopica, Haugania oederi and Buellia aethalea
Cards on the table. Tilberthwaite is one of my favourite areas of the Lakes. The gnarly landscape has woods and rocks and old mines and becks and a gorge and quarries and vernacular architecture. There’s access to the Coniston Fells and it’s never as busy as Coniston itself, or nearby Langdale. On past wanderings I’ve found Bunodophoron melanocarpum and Sticta fuliginosa. And this morning, as I pulled my boots on, a Red Squirrel ran up Tilberthwaite Beck just feet away from me.
There were only five of us in the lichen party as we set off towards Penny Rigg Copper Works. This was built in the 1860s when a new tunnel was driven through the rock for over a kilometre to the Tilberthwaite mine. But the works closed down after only a decade, and though there were one or two short reopenings, slate quarrying prevailed across the hillside for most of the next century.
Needless to say, we didn’t make it to the copper works without being distracted. A roadside outcrop provided the first saxicolous crusts of the day: Porpidia tuberculosa, Rhizocarpon reductum, Ochrolechia parella. There was also the first signs of the country rock being a bit more basic in places: Protoblastenia rupestris and Rhizocarpon petraeum.
After finally making it to the works, we were distracted by a sign that told us “lichens thrive here”. We hoped so. And got started on the ground around the old settling ponds, where ore was separated from waste rock (gangue). A Pied Wagtail chissicked away: the ruins must be perfect breeding habitat. We soon found some of the brightly coloured metalliferous species we were hoping for- reds in the settling beds? There was Tremolecia atrata, with concave apothecia, Rhizocarpon (now Haugania) oederi with gnarly apothecia and plates of Acarospora sinopoica. We didn’t find any Lecidea silacea– maybe it’s around somewhere.
On the walls of the old crushing mill and dressing mill there was Baeomyces placophyllus, with its squamulose lobes, Gyrographa gyrocarpa, Enterographa zonata and Myriolecis antiqua. A green crust in a crack had black perithecia with the most impressive ostioles and spores so large they could be seen in photographs of the perithecia. It’s still not clear what it is- possibly a number of things growing together. There was Sterocaulon pileatum: one of the “Fisher Price people” was wearing a black beret of an apothecia. Despite careful observation of the sorediate Lecanoras I couldn’t find any L. handelii. Whilst the colour of some was greyer than I might expect for L. soralifera, the soredia were rising from the areole centres and there was no UV reaction.
Moving uphill , we entered the cleft where the adit towards Tilberthwaite mine began. The lichens reflected the probably less acid rock: there were sheets of Peltigera praetextata;Normandina pulchella and Agonimia tristicula on the mosses; Collema furfuraceum rosettes. A brown isidiate species was eventually determined to be Placynthium nigrum.
The walls of the old powder house, a separate building to minimise damage from potential explosions, were explored. There were plates of Ochrolechia parella, lots of orange apothecia from Blastenia ( was Claoplaca) crenularia and Tephromela atra. The latter supported Lecanora sulphurea growing parasitically in its early stages. Glaucomaria (was Lecanora) rupicola had Arthonia varians forming black patches on the apothecia.
Further south, where massed tree planting has recently taken place, we found Cladonia species aplenty, Scoliciosporum umbrinum on the rock and Graphis elegans grew on a stunted holly.
The day was coming towards the end…but another slate quarry distracted us. Once again it had more basic rock and lichens including Scytinum lichenoides and a number of Caloplaca species. Some small lecanorine apothecia keyed out to Myriolecis dispersa, but didn’t look quite right. Or is that just that we normally see it in very different circumstances? Caz worked out that there was Collema glebulentum as well as more C. furfuraceum and C. flaccidum.
With a list of about 100 species we can say it was a good day in a grand place. Thank you everyone for helping make it so.
Text: Pete Martin Photos: Chris Cant, Paul Hanson, Caz Walker, Peter Bisset, Pete Martin
For the last few years we’ve done a lichen morning with students on the University of Cumbria’s Wildlife and Media course in Carlisle. This usually involves a walk from the Brampton Road Campus along Tarraby Lane to Hadrian’s Wood, where there’s a lot of common lichens growing on the trees. We also look at lichens on the campus walls and pavements, though the remarkable wooden rubbish bin appears to have been removed by the University authorities.
Here’s what a couple of this year’s students had to say- and some of the photos they took.
I learnt just how interesting they are and how they can survive in so many weathers. I was surprised to also see that they’re everywhere and how we can mistake them for chewing gum! – Corinne Rose Holyoake
I loved the session with Pete – I learnt so many new and interesting things. What fascinated me was how much we don’t know about lichen and how the connection between the fungi and algae/cyanobacteria is formed.
I was surprised by how diverse lichens are, and realised leafy ones, specifically xanthoria parietina, are my favourite – I’ve never had a favourite lichen before!
We even found some lichenicolous fungi living on some physcia adscendens.
They way they act as a bioindicator for air quality and woodland management is so exciting and shows just how vital they are for every ecosystem. I definitely won’t be overlooking lichen anymore.
Since then, I’ve got myself a hand lens and take it everywhere with me because lichen and moss is everywhere! It’s opened up a new world of tiny things, not just lichen, which I had never considered before. – Lucy Ruddle
Francis Rose called the woods along the Seathwaite Road “the most important … lichenologically in northern England”. Having been several times, it is apparent that a major factor in this is that there are several different pockets within the woodland, each with different rock types, tree species and lichen communities present. Each pocket is interesting, good or even better… add them all together and you get the superlative.
All my past visits had been to the lower slopes between the bridge and the Borrowdale yews: the ancient ash and other pollards have some truly remarkable Lobarion communities. This time, however, we decided to look at the area nearer to Seatoller, where oak woods extend up the slope. So we turned through the first gate over the bridge and immediately found Schizotrema quercicola, with pinky soredia and a P+ orange reaction. Nearby trees had clumps of the coral lichen, Sphaerophorous globosus, and Ochrolechia androgyna. There was Usnea cornuta on one oak.
That’s the Usnea being on just one tree. Virtually all the trees were oaks in this lower part of the wood. Some were old and quite bulky, but many looked to be the same sort of age. There appeared to be no regeneration, or understorey, thanks presumably to the level of grazing. Almost all the lichens we found were indicative of acid bark: one tree had Hypotrachyna taylorensis, Micarea stipitata, Ochrolechia tartarea and both Coenogniums: luteum and pineti. Nearby, we found the first H. laevigata of the day.
Just a little higher, we found what we presumed ( and was later confirmed by microscopy) to be Allographa anomala (used to be Graphis or Graphina ruizana) with raised lirellae (fancifully likened by someone to burnt sausages). There was Mycoblastus caesius too. Schismatomma umbrinum was found on the underhang of a boulder: its cushioned thallus was almost spongy. Somewhat strangely there didn’t seem to be a lot of Usnea (or Evernia or much of any lichen in fact) in the canopy- we’d have thought more would have been brought down in recent storms. The fallen trees didn’t seem to have a lot either.
After lunch we climbed higher, and crossed the wall into High Stile Wood, spotting Parmeliopsis hyperopta on a larch. There was Thelotrema now (the yellow medulla suggested lueckingii rather than lepadinum) in profusion on some trees. And the sheer amount of Hypotrachyna taylorensis was making itself felt: I became almost blasé about it. I could easily have seen more in that one afternoon then ever in total before. It’s a strange lichen with no apothecia, soredia or isidia. Presumably it is spread round by bits breaking off and being carried to a new tree (or rock- it will grow on mossy rocks too). We discussed the common name it is sometimes given: Tumbling Kittens. We got the tumbling but kittens? What happened to the rule that all lichen analogies have to be food-related?
We reached the top of the wood, having found Mycoblastus sanguinarius once. That took my personal Upland Rainforest Index score for the day to 9 – I’m sure that if I had taken samples I’d have made it to the magic 10 because that looked very much like Bryobilimbia sanguineotara but I’m not quite confident enough to identify it on sight.
Rocks about the trees had Haematomma ochroleucum, Pilophorus strumaticus and there was some Peltigera hymenina too. Chris and Caz later identified Psoronactis (Lecanactis) dilleniana from a wall.
Up towards the top of the wood there were more hazels. One boasted a badger skull underneath it. Coming down, on a slightly more southerly line, sharp eyes noticed something different: a Pyrenula. Discussion, with the LGBI3 key handy to refer to on a phone, ensued. The perithecia were too big for P. chlorospila; there were no pseudocyphellae; a lot of the ostioles were on the side of the perithecia rather than in the centre. The thalli appeared perhaps less waxy, possibly more browny than others. We decided it was P. acutispora, a new one for me, but not for the site.
By then the light was beginning to fade in the woods, so we descended and headed slowly back to the car park after a very enjoyable day. Having missed the last few trips because of poorliness it was great to be out with the group again.
The weather for once smiled on this trip. A thaw had set in making it an easy drive and it was dry, even sunny – that is on the opposite side of the valley. Our woodland was on the steep north facing slope so no sun for us at this time of year. The monad has been visited many times before and already had 178 recorded lichens. Nevertheless we were able to add a few more. I suppose it shows that there are so many micro-habitats in an ancient wood with rock outcrops that it requires many visits and many eyes to examine every one.
A very good turn out of lichenogists and bryologists meant using the lay-bys all along the road to park. We split up right at the start and didn’t meet up until the end. Both groups expressed satisfaction with their finds.
From the start we were looking at some of the more common lichens on trees: Parmelia saxatilis, Parmelia sulcata, Physcia aipolia, Lecanactis abietina, Hypotrachyna laevigata, Mycoblastus sanguinarius and Thelotrema, with Lepra multipuncta showing the sorediate apothecia and K+ red-brown.
We checked on the Lobaria pulmonaria transplants and paid homage to the Ricasolia (Lobaria) virens – why should it be on this tree and not on all the others? The tree is in a small dip so maybe the microclimate? Something had dislodged a small lobe and I happened to have a mapping pin in my pocket so picking it up from the ground I slipped it into the moss on an apparently similar nearby tree. Something to look for in 10 years time.
Maybe people concentrate too much on the delightful ancient woodland species on the trees and not enough on the just lovely long-established mosaics on the rock outcrops. One of the species new to the monad was Clauzadea monticola on a rare substrate in this natural woodland – a concrete post marking an underground electricity line! Another, Lecanora gangaleoides on an otherwise uninteresting piece of fractured rock. Both are common and readily identifiable lichens. Also on the concrete was a very wet Bilimbia sabuletorum.
Something new to me was Schismatomma umbrinum, forming thick spongy buff coloured sorediate crusts on dryish sheltered rock, amongst other silicious rock species forming mosaics. It has negative chemistry but is UV+white when scratched. This uncommon species was pointed out here by John Douglass a few years ago and has since been seen elsewhere in the vicinity. It only has a handful of records in Cumbria and a very limited national distribution.
Thanks to the organisers and participants who made it such a good day out.
Text: Peter Bisset, with additions by Chris and Caz Photos: Chris Cant, Caz Walker, Geoffrey Haigh, Will Michaels
A large huddle of the Cumbria Lichen and Bryophyte Group
This was a popular meeting with 11 people looking at lichens and even more at bryophytes. We car-shared to a point where a few vehicles could park at the edge of the wood and Edward Mills, the owner, gave a brief introduction. He bought the wood in 2020 and is aiming to create a mosaic of different habitats. Management includes coppicing in some areas but there are large old hazel trees too which will be retained. Deer, both roe and red, are a problem currently, limiting natural regeneration.
As you might imagine for a low-lying site (c 30m above sea level at the high points), it’s very damp underfoot with recent rain also having wetted every surface. Some lichens were doing very well in these circumstances – the first thing seen after only a few metres were stunning sheets of Baeomyces rufus covered in a sward of tiny mushroom-like fruiting bodies on exposed rock by the track. Here too we started to examine the trunks and twigs of nearby willow, birch and alder, finding various common lichens – bitter-tasting Lepra amara, Evernia prunastri pretending to be a fruticose lichen, various Hypotrachyna spp and Platismatia glauca amongst others. Further on there were oak trees on drier ground where Micarea alabastrites and Pachyphiale carneola were spotted by Allan, with Normandina pulchella and Peltigera praetextata found by Chris.
This first part of the wood was fairly dark which might account for the limited range of lichens. Further on we began to see hazel trees which overall had a good range of crustose species, especially lirellate ones (with scribble-like fruiting bodies). The best of these were in the southern part of the wood where it was more open and well-lit. Here we found red-pink pruinose Coniocarpon cinnabarinum, Coniocarpon cuspidans with immersed purple lirellae, Arthonia didyma with tiny fleck-like apothecia and Opegrapha niveoatra, as well as Graphis scripta sensu stricto. Some of these were checked under the microscope later. Throughout, on mature oak, there was a lot of Diarthonis spadicea (was Arthonia) with “arthonioid” round apothecia with blurry edges. Another nice find was the glue fungus, Hymenochaete corrugata, which bonds dead branches and twigs together above ground, so avoiding competition from other fungi.
Lunch was on the bank of the tidal Rusland Pool watercourse where there were also a few species on the wooden rails of the bridge and on a gate. These included Fuscidea lightfootii, Micarea lignaria and Candelariella vitellina.
After this we cut back across the denser wood but found several canopy species where an oak had fallen allowing us to look at the topmost twigs. Here there was Usnea subfloridana, a genus which likes lots of light so lives in the canopy until a storm brings it down to our level. Nearby rock outcrops had several nice crustose species, including pink-orange sorediate Gyrographa gyrocarpa growing with purple-brown Enterographa zonata with pale soredia, forming mosaics.
The centre of the wood has some established rhododendron which looked as though it was in the process of being tackled. Holly was frequent in the wood, a tree lichenologists tend to dislike as it casts year-long dense shade on adjacent trunks, badly affecting lichens there. On the other hand old holly trees are lovely and support good lichens. Xanthoria parietina was scarce, seen only once, which is a good thing.
As usual we had a good time with lots of lichen chat and looking at nice things in a wood new to us.
We had a good turnout despite a dreich weather forecast – in the end it was chilly and gloomy but largely dry, with the lichens damp but not underwater. About 15 people, both bryologists and lichenologists, met at Legburthwaite at the north end of Thirlmere from where a short walk along the busy road took us to the southern nose of High Rigg. This is a low N-S ridge formed of andesite, an igneous rock which can sometimes contain alkaline minerals, adding some variety to the frequently acidic upland rock – although we didn’t see any species indicating this.
The southern monad NY3119 already contained 43 records so we didn’t write down everything we saw, whereas the next monad to the north NY3120 only showed 3 lichen records. Our aim was to reach that in order to expand on the lichen knowledge for that square. In the end we made a list of 35-40 lichens for the northern monad which isn’t bad given that there was a lot of lichen chatting to distract us from recording.
As usual it was slow going as every rock and tree had the potential for lengthy discussions. Now and then we got cold and needed a brisk walk on to the next feature. Heading up hill we came across lots of hopeful oak seedlings as well as mature trees which had a range of typical acid bark lichens, such as bushy Evernia prunastri and red-fruited Cladonia polydactyla. Further up there were scattered pine with small grey lobes of foliose Parmeliopsis hyperopta. Also on pine was Hypocenomyce scalaris another acid-bark species, made up of little downward pointing scales with a sorediate rim, going a delicious C+red.
A large isolated boulder had a good range of crustose species, such as Trapelia glebulosa, Immersaria athroocarpa and Lepra corallina, as well as sheets of Lasallia pustulata forming a warted leafy mass. Here too were the charismatic fruticose Stereocaulon evolutum (KC+violet and Pd-) and S vesuvianum. Peter looked underneath and found orangey Gyrographa gyrocarpa where it would be drier, as well as Pertusaria amara on the top of the rock, confirmed by tasting (it’s very bitter). This is usually on bark.
As we got higher there were more rocky outcrops which began to show a nice range of upland species – Ophioparma ventosa with red apothecia, yellow granules of Candelariella coralliza where birds perch, lots of leafy grey Parmelia saxatilis and a range of terricolous Cladonia species. There was also the less common Stereocaulon vesuvianum var nodulosum which has blobs of soredia at the top of the podetia. At our furthest point Chris spotted several thalli of the terricolous placodioid lichen Baeomyces placophyllus. This looks similar to the commoner Baeomyces rufus in colour but forms distinct lobes around the edge of a rosette. On the surface are schizidia, convex propagules where the cortex has peeled up forming scales. A lengthy discussion arose about this…
As ever, the adjacent drystone wall produced interesting finds. Peter spotted an LF (lichenicolous fungus, ie a fungus that lives on or in a lichen) on Parmelia saxatilis which turned out to be Nesolechia oxyspora, new to Cumbria and the north of England. Nearby on the north-facing side of the wall was Psoronactis dilleniana, a mauve-grey pruinose crust with dark apothecia.
Liz spotted a bonus species earlier in the day – Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa, a slime mould, on the upturned root plate of a fallen tree.
Other LFs seen were red-pink patches of Marchandiomyces corallinus on Parmelia and, earlier in the day, Zyzygomyces physciacearum on Physcia aipolia – or was it? It was later confirmed as the rarer Zyzygomyces aipoliae which has recently been separated from Z physciacearum. These used to be in the Heterocephalacria genus. Anyone coping with reading this paragraph deserves a prize….
Walking back didn’t take very long. After a final look at a quantity of Peltigera praetextata on the mossy wall at the road we headed back to the cars.
Thanks to Pete Martin for organising the trip which he was unable to attend.
Text: Caz Walker Photos: Chris Cant, Peter Bisset, Caz Walker
Coenogonium luteum (until recently known as Dimerella lutea) is a striking and usually easily recognisable lichen when fertile. It features on the front cover of the latest edition of Dobson (2018), where it is described as having apothecia that look “like tinned apricots when wet and a poached egg when dry”. Most lichen folk will learn to recognise it early on: so records should reflect its distribution and how it is doing.
The latest maps on the CLBG website (based on BLS records up to August 2024) show 62 records for Cumbria (some will refer to multiple thalli at one location; I can’t be sure that the same lichen hasn’t been recorded on different occasions). Of these, 44 have been since 2020; 16 were between 2010 and 2019 and only two were prior to 2010 (in 2007 and 8). There has been a significant increase in lichen recording in the last few years, and a quick look at C. luteum recording rates against total number of records suggest these haven’t changed much since 2018. So has it just appeared recently? Evidence to back this up might include Francis Rose (1971) not mentioning it his reports from the 1970s, and the Cumbria Biodiversity Data Centre records having just one entry- from 2019.
It’s hard to be sure, but the BLS website maps suggest recent national expansion with far more red (post-2000) hectads than blue (1960-2000), except possibly in south east England. So I think we are OK in saying it is doing well at the moment in Cumbria, and has expanded since the first record- from Grune Point- in 2007. Either that, or it was hugely under-recorded in the past.
As to why: LGBI3 (Cannon et al 2021) says the recent spread is “probably in response to the decline in acidifying air pollution and potentially also warmer temperatures”. But maybe there’s more: Bamforth (2008), writing about the lichens of Lancashire, notes that “whilst C. luteum and its relative C. pineti score 8 and 4 respectively on the Hawksworth and Rose Zone scale meaning it must be very clean and yet both are found at Mereclough, Prestwich, quite close to the council’s refuse destructor.” I personally wonder about the increased rainfall of the last decade or so as a contributory factor.
Of our 62 records, 34 are in Westmorland, 28 in Cumberland. As the map shows, much of Cumbria is covered: from Hutton Roof to Grune Point, from Nenthead to Ennerdale. The empty gaps appear to be along the west coast and in the area north of the A66. Is this because it isn’t there, or because these are the areas with least recording?
Dobson says that it is “frequent on bark and moss on deciduous trees in damp, fairly shaded areas of old woodland…where it is sometimes also found on mosses growing on the ground or on siliceous rocks.” LGBI3 says “On bark and associated bryophytes and occasionally on siliceous rocks in humid, shaded situations, and on mosses on soil; locally frequent.”
Of the 62 records, 41 are exclusively corticolous, and only 3 involve growing on stone (not all records have substrate information). Whilst it does grow directly on bark and rock, I would suggest from personal experience that many of those tree records involve it actually growing on bryophytes on the bark.
There are 47 records with a tree species indicated. Oak comes top (10 records) followed by willow (9) and hazel (8). And whilst there is maybe a tendency to grow on more basic-barked trees, there are hardly any more records of it growing on ash or elm (2 of each species) than on pine and spruce (one of each). A Latvian study (Mežaka et al 2008) found it on sycamore, small-leaved lime and birch. Maybe it likes a pH in the middle.
Which is interesting if we think about how Coenognium luteum is often listed (on the BLS spreadsheet for example, or see Woods and Coppins 2012) as an associate of the Lobarion community. In Cumbria, this is probably most often found on basic-barked trees, particularly ash. Also interestingly, there are relatively few records from the strongholds of the Cumbria Lobarion (Borrowdale, for example) and it was not recorded at Rydal Park in 2019.
It is often also mentioned as being in the woodland indices of ecological continuity. It would appear that whilst it used to be in the Revised and New Indices (for example in Coppins and Coppins 2002) it does not feature in their successor, the Southern Oceanic Woodland Index (Sanderson et al 2018). I presume this removal reflects its spread in recent years to woodlands without ecological continuity.
So where does it grow? Well, in a wide variety of places, as there are a lot of damp woodlands in Cumbria. But three particular environments spring to mind, in the first two of which I am coming to almost expect it.
The first is in wet “scrubby” woods, where it can be very frequent on youngish mossy willow (and associated hazels etc). Some examples would be at the back of the Hollingworth and Vose Factory in Kentmere and near Dubbs reservoir above the Troutbeck valley. Similar colonies have been found along the Solway coast in recent years by Russell Gomm and others: here it grows regularly on gorse as well as willow. Whilst some of these woods are densely shaded, others are more open.
A second habitat where I have come to expect to find it is on higher and more isolated trees among the fells: on rowans or other species that are standing out in a heavily grazed landscape, maybe growing from cliffs or in gullies. Examples would be at Wolf Crags, in Far Easdale and on the north side of Langdale. Again, these are not always particularly shaded, though might be north-facing and so avoiding direct sunlight.
A more shaded environment is on older trees among younger planted ones: examples could be in the Dale Park and Claife areas of south Cumbria (on sycamore and oak among conifers), or near Broughton in Furness (oak among planted broad leaves).
Obviously, there are other niches that this lichen is able to thrive in; these three habitats are not exclusive and can blend into one another. But it is perhaps worth thinking about them as we are out lichen hunting. With the increased woodland on the fells due to planting and reduced grazing pressure it may be that these environments will become more common. Will Coenogonium luteum become more common too? Is that what is already happening?
It is perhaps worth mentioning here that I have rarely found it “frequent”; present on more than few trees at a site. It is often a species found once in a wood. Neil Sanderson (2010) described it as being “widespread but never frequent” in the New Forest, and that sounds like a good description to me. But that lack of frequency begs the question why?
At the current rate of recording, we will soon be reaching 100 records for C. luteum in Cumbria. It is moving from being a more notable to a more commonplace species. It is obviously doing well. I would be interested in hearing others’ opinions on it and any other habitats people have noticed it thriving in. Further questions might relate to some of the references I’ve some across. To it being a “mobile species” (how long do thalli last?); to the apothecia being only numerous in winter and spring; to it being “almost always associated to Frullania” ( Lichens Marins). I wonder if these are the case for the species in Cumbria?
Update: It has been pointed out that there are also four records shown on the BLS website interactive maps at a hectad (10km square) level that probably date from before the 2007 find at Grune Point. It is not clear where or when they were recorded.
Rose, F, 1971. A survey of the Woodlands of the Lake District and an assessment of their conservation value based upon structure, age of trees and lichen and bryophyte epiphyte flora. Unpublished report to Nature Conservancy
Sanderson, N. A. (2010) Chapter 9 Lichens. In: Biodiversity in the New Forest (ed. A. C. Newton) 84-111. Newbury, Berkshire; Pisces Publications
Sanderson, N.A., Wilkins, T.C., Bosanquet, S.D.S. & Genney, D.R. 2018. Guidelines for the Selection of Biological SSSIs. Part 2: Detailed Guidelines for Habitats and Species Groups. Chapter 13 Lichens and associated microfungi. JNCC, Peterborough. Available at: https://hub.jncc.gov.uk/assets/330efebf-9504-4074-b94c-97e9bbdbe746
Scales Wood sits on the steep north-east facing slopes opposite Buttermere village. It’s a marvellous place, the SSSI citation describes it as having “the best and most extensive example in the Lake District of a lichen community typical of upland, high rainfall oakwoods such as those found in the Scottish Highlands”. For some of us, it was our third visit and it nearly didn’t happen.
Storm Ashley made us look carefully at the weather maps. The rain was forecast to stop between 10 and 11 o’clock. So we pushed back the start time. The strongest winds were later on, and maybe we’d be sheltered by the fells. Indeed, as we eight lichen botherers gathered at the foot of the Newlands Road it really wasn’t very windy at all. But it was bucketing down. Morale sank as we waded along the ankle-deep river oops, sorry, path towards the bridge.
But the rain soon stopped, and it was almost pleasant as we wandered along the bottom of the wood, discussing Peltigera membranacea (bullate, tomentose, downturned lobes and long separate rhizines), Hypogymnia physodes (soredia on splayed hollow lobe ends) and Parmelia saxatilis ( linear pseudocyphellae and isidia). A ninth member of the party joined us. There was a selection of Pertusaria species to compare: amara (bitter), corallina (isidiate) and pertusa (pepperpot-style apothecial warts). It didn’t seem right to mention that the first two have now changed genus to Lepra…
We had lunch by a holly at the northwest end of the wood, and then began the climb up alongside a beck. To no-one’s surprise, we didn’t go very fast or get very far. There were Punctelia pseudocyphellae to look at (dot-like, rather than linear) and a good array of the upland rainforest specialities: Hypotrachyna laevigata with its smooth, clean-cut lobes; Sphaerophorus globosus the coral lichen, Mycoblastus sanguinarius with red patches under the apothecia. There were Micarea alabastrites and M. cinerea. A little Cetrelia olivetorum was found on a fallen oak with its longer pseudocyphellae and bare undersides near the lobe edges.
The star of the show, as ever in Scales Wood, was Hypotrachyna (until recently Parmelinopsis) horrescens. It’s a small, leafy thing, with isidia and cilia (hairs) on the surface. It looks like a diminutive version of Parmotrema crinitum, so I think of it as Desperate Dan’s little brother. It’s not quite on every tree, but there’s a lot of it in Scales Wood. What’s odd is that this is the most northerly known population. It’s only been found in one other Lakeland wood, and the main areas of it in Britain are north Wales, the New Forest and the south west. I wonder if a concerted hunt across these western valleys would reveal any more?
We also saw the yellowish crust Lecanora alboflavida on birch, not recorded at this wood before, although it is nearby in Ennerdale. Also new to this site was Schismatomma umbrinum, a brown granular crust which likes sheltered rocks in old woodland.
I also wonder if Lobarina scrobiculata is still here in Scales Wood. It was last seen in 1961. So it’s hard to imagine it has survived. But it’s quite a big wood, not easy to move around, and after three visits I feel like we have barely scratched the surface. So maybe, just maybe… oh we’ll have to come back for a fourth visit!
Arriving early to avoid hold-ups from roadworks at Threlkeld we found the car park by Derwent Water almost empty. It quickly filled with lichenologists and bryologists all having had the same idea. Car parking for non-NT members is now restricted to 4 hours but luckily sufficient membership cards were produced (thanks, Pete) for us all to stay all day. There was still an early morning chill to the air but the clear blue sky presaged another dry, warm day to come, in this brief but welcome period of high-pressure.
First find of the day was down by the lakeside where Caz had seen a small inconspicuous piece of Sticta limbata on willow. Crossing the road from the car park our party of eight lichenologists followed rather more slowly in the steps of the bryologists who were more focussed on reaching the beck and falls behind the Lodore Hotel. There was plenty of interest along the path which wound along the base of the steep hillside through mainly sessile oak, elm and ash SSSI woods, where we found plenty of luxuriant Peltigera spp. on tree trunks and mossy boulders, various Pertusaria spp, Coniocarpon cinnabarinum, C. cuspidans (previously Arthonia elegans, one of the species that has changed both generic and specific names – annotate your Dobson!), Mycoblastus sanguinarius or bloody heart lichen and Normandina pulchella aptly given the common name, elf-ears. A highlight for me was Pete’s description of the orange, dark-rimmed apothecia on Pachyphiale carneola as iron-bru jelly sweets and his tip for remembering the latin name as ‘elephant flesh’ (it worked for me!). Graphis spp were much in evidence, G. pulverulenta and G. personii as well as G. scripta s.str. on hazel.
A bit further on, we crossed into the second monad of the day and began another list. Perhaps directed by a shaft of sunlight on a tree trunk, we found Parmotrema crinitum, which Pete memorably calls Desperate Dan because of its black whiskers. A few yards further on was our lunch-spot, the sunny viewpoint at the bottom of the Lodore falls from where we espied the bryologists picnicking in their natural habitat of shade, amongst the spray-splashed rocks in the streambed below us. It would have been easy to be lulled into a post-prandial nap by the soothing sound of the cascading water and the warm sunshine but instead we set off again, this time upwards, scrambling up a steep path over slippery scree and tree roots which led up high above the beck. Here we discovered some more, interesting specimens such as Pannaria conoplea, a diminutive foliose species on a horizontal but still living larch and a filamentous species on vertical rock probably Cystocoleus ebeneus. Wood ants were out and about, if you rested your hand on a larch it was soon discovered and discouraged. A large nest at the base of one of the larches on the slope was alive with ant activity.
By mid-afternoon we felt we’d gone as far as we wanted and retraced our steps downhill, catching tantalising glimpses of the placid lake waters which looked invitingly cool in the hot afternoon sun. Down at the falls where it was shaded and several degrees cooler, jelly lichens Scytinium lichenoides and Leptogium cyanescens were living amongst the moss. We recorded Sticta sylvatica but looking carefully at the photos, at least some of it was the much rarer S. ciliata. Tiny but exquisite mosaic-forming Enterographa hutchinsiae was colonising flat pebbles. When we eventually returned to our cars, the car park had emptied and a few hardy souls were swimming in the lake but none of our party were tempted in!
Microscopic study of small samples taken home brought up more surprises, see the discussions on our Facebook page. Toniopsis (Bacidia) inornata was found, also on a pebble, and the first record for England. A putative Bacidia had spores that were much too short and has been confirmed as Lecania chlorotiza which has ‘near threatened’ status, whilst what we thought might be Catinaria atropurpurea had spores that were much too long and could be Bacidia absistens.
Text: Liz and Peter Bisset Photos: Peter Bisset, Chris Cant, Pete Martin, Paul Hanson, Caz Walker
We seem to be making a habit of exploring borderlands, this time again at the Cumbria-Yorkshire boundary in the uplands to the south east of Kirkby Stephen: Lamps Moss, south of Nine Standards Rigg. It’s an interesting spot with both acidic peat hag habitat and gritstone rock adjacent to limestone pavement and sinkholes. As a result we saw a good selection of lichens which prefer these different niches. The site is part of the Mallerstang-Swaledale SSSI.
At over 500m this is an exposed site so the trip was nearly cancelled due to ongoing stormy weather. However a window of dryness after a later than usual start time meant we avoided the rain.
First we looked at the peat hags north of the road, commenting about the lack of lichens in the sward – not even much Cladonia portentosa was to be had. Dwarf shrubs such as heather, bilberry, crowberry and cranberry were there, however, so past management might be the explanation. However, on low exposed peat banks there was a range of Cladonia species – red-fruited C bellidiflora and C diversa, brown-fruited C ramulosa and spiky C furcata. The basal squamules of Lichenomphalia hudsoniana and the gelatinous green thalline bobbles of L umbellifera (now L ericetorum) were here too. A fuzz of yellow-brown granules on horizontal peat seemed a candidate for Placynthiella dasaea and a specimen was taken to torture once it had dried out – applying chemicals to sodden lichens doesn’t work. It turned out to be C+red with green algae of the right size, hopefully confirming it as P dasaea.
There have been attempts to restore some of the areas of bare peat by blocking channels and spreading cut heather on unvegetated ground – this may help mosses but will kill any lichens growing here and indeed very little was seen at these spots.
A long-discarded crisp bag deep in the Sphagnum turned out to be a sexton beetle graveyard where maybe 30 of them had been attracted to their deaths by the strong smell of earlier rotting beetles.
We went back to the carpark for lunch and to meet further participants. This allowed for the examination of several concrete posts which had a good covering of crustose and a few foliose lichens, including unusually fertile Physcia caesia.
A short walk further west took us into the next monad where we looked at terricolous and saxicolous lichens on limestone. There was green Peltigera leucophlebia dotted with brown cephalodia, P polydactylon with brown veins on the underside that come to the lobe edge and P canina showing bushy, confluent rhizines beneath. The intriguing Diploschistes muscorum was consuming a Cladonia victim nearby by overgrowing it and pinching its algae. The star find on limestone was Sagiolechia protuberans, a rare species with 4 previous records in Cumbria. This had black star-shaped apothecia on a slightly orange thallus. Nearby there were the immersed pink apothecia of Hymenelia prevostii (green alga so the thallus scratches green) and further on Hymenelia epulotica (Trentepohlia as photobiont so scratches yellow/orange). Other good finds included Solorina saccata amongst moss in a sheltered sinkhole, Bryobilimbia hypnorum and Arthonia calcarea, as well as the usual suspects Gyalecta jenensis (now Secoliga jenensis), Protoblastenia rupestris and P incrustans plus assorted jelly lichens. Pete had a specimen which may turn out to be a Staurothele species – tbc.
Before driving off, Judith found a beautiful Lecanora intricata with wrinkled areoles and flexuose apothecial margins on the sandstone capstone of the YDNP sign by the road.
Text: Caz Walker Photos: Chris Cant, Pete Martin, Judith Allinson
