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A spot test in lichenology is a spot analysis used to help identify lichens.It is performed by placing a drop of a chemical reagent on different parts of the lichen and noting the colour change (or lack thereof) associated with application of the chemical.
Study of lichens draws knowledge from several disciplines: mycology, phycology, microbiology and botany. Scholars of lichenology are known as lichenologists. Study of lichens is conducted by both professional and amateur lichenologists. Methods for species identification include reference to single-access keys on lichens.
With the exception of calicioid lichens, lichen growth forms are based on the appearance of the thallus, which is the vegetative (non-reproductive) part of the lichen. [5] In most species, this form is determined by the lichen's fungal partner, though in a small number, it is instead the alga or cyanobacteria (the lichen's photosynthetic ...
Some species, the lichenicolous lichens, can even develop their own lichenised thalli using the host lichen's photobiont. [8] Certain lichenicolous fungi may play important roles in nutrient cycling within the lichen thallus, potentially benefiting the host by degrading and recycling older parts of the lichen.
Pilophorus acicularis, commonly known as the nail lichen or the devil's matchstick lichen, [2] is a species of matchstick lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. P. aciculare has both crustose (crust-like) and fruticose thallus (shrub-like) body parts. [ 3 ]
A lichen's usefulness as a medicine is often related to the lichen secondary compounds that are abundant in most lichen thalli. Different lichens produce a wide variety of these compounds, most of which are unique to lichens and many of which are antibiotic. It has been estimated that 50% of all lichen species have antibiotic properties. [3]
Edible lichens are lichens that have a cultural history of use as a food. Although almost all lichen are edible (with some notable poisonous exceptions like the wolf lichen , powdered sunshine lichen , and the ground lichen [ 1 ] ), not all have a cultural history of usage as an edible lichen.
Letharia vulpina, commonly known as the wolf lichen (although the species name vulpina, from vulpine relates to the fox), is a fruticose lichenized species of fungus in the family Parmeliaceae. It is bright yellow-green, shrubby and highly branched, and grows on the bark of living and dead conifers in parts of western and continental Europe and ...