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Issue: Vol. 712 No. 3: 1 Aug. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-08-01
DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.712.3.1
Page range: 207-229
Abstract views: 569
PDF downloaded: 1783

The Thin Horizon of a Plan is Almost Clear: Towards a Lichen Biodiversity Inventory of the Southern Rocky Mountains, USA

Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA; Museum of Natural History, Botany Department (COLO Herbarium), University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
biodiversity conservation description dichotomous key floristics Lecanora Lepraria lichen lichenized fungi Pertusaria phylogeny species discovery taxonomy Fungi

Abstract

Among the grand challenges of the 21st Century is the documentation and description of the Earth’s biodiversity. This is especially the case for groups of organisms that historically have received far less attention than others, which is likely related to a lack of formal education/training in many to most K–12 systems. Lichens remain among the least studied groups of macro-organisms anywhere in the world. New research to understand their biodiversity is met with heightened urgency considering unprecedent rates of habitat destruction and that 21st Century ecosystems are now sculpted by human activities as much as they are by natural phenomena. The present contribution builds on early evidence of an exceptionally rich but as yet poorly documented lichen biota of the southern Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Here, we describe three species new to science and conduct molecular phylogenetic analyses that help place this diversity within the context of related species: Lecanora indigoana, Lepraria saliersiae, and Pertusaria rayana. We provide the new combination Lecanora gigantea for Myriolecis gigantea, and the new name Lecanora planata for Myriolecis complanata, which cannot be transferred under its original epithet due to homonymy in Lecanora. Additionally, we provide three new dichotomous keys that aid in the identification of these species in comparison to close relatives that occur throughout the region. Finally, we conduct IUCN conservation assessments for all three species to assist in future preservation strategies. Through discovery and description of the Colorado lichen biota, we aim to engage a broad audience of stakeholders and interest groups in these remarkable symbiotic organisms.

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How to Cite

Manzitto-Tripp, E.A. & Watts, J.L. (2025) The Thin Horizon of a Plan is Almost Clear: Towards a Lichen Biodiversity Inventory of the Southern Rocky Mountains, USA. Phytotaxa 712 (3): 207–229. https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.712.3.1