Abstracts, XIV OPTIMA Meeting, Palermo (Italy) , 9-15

XIV OPTIMA Meeting, Palermo (Italy), 9-15 September 2013
The Iberian Lichen Flora project. A case of study related with the genus Cladonia
BURGAZ A. R., PINO-BODAS R., MARTÍN M. P.
Dept. Biología Vegetal I, Fac. de CC. Biológicas, Univ. Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. E-mail: arburgaz@bio.ucm.es
The Iberian Lichen Flora project started in 1990 was sponsored by the Spanish Lichen Society (SEL)
and supported by the Spanish public authorities with the objective of knowing and revising most of the
species that grow in Spain and Portugal. The Iberian Lichen Checklist included 2426 lichens and 368
lichenicolous fungi. Nevertheless many problems arose due to several areas and habitats unexplored.
The Iberian Peninsula is quite diverse in substrates, altitudes and vascular vegetation, and few lichen
specimens were available into the national herbaria. At the same time a decrease of lichen diversity was
observed in relation with the increase of chemical pollutants or forest management.
The Iberian Peninsula constitutes the western and southern biogeographical limits for many Euro-
Asiatic species. The main mountains ranges are difficult habitats to be colonized by some lichen
species. In other cases they are important isolated refuges.
We are still far from understanding the ecology and distribution of the Iberian lichens. This knowledge
is important in conservation biology because: (1) they establish a baseline for species identification
and thus the necessary framework for ecological studies, (2) they provide biogeographical context
to better understanding how the species are distributed, which of them are rare and restricted, or which
are frequent and widely distributed.
Ten volumes have been published from 2003-2011 which comprises nearly 500 species related with
several lichen groups. Peltigerales: Lobariaceae, Nephromataceae, Peltigeraceae, Massalongiaceae
and Placynthiaceae. Graphidaceae, Solorinellaceae, Gyalectaceae. Bacidiaceae I. Cladoniaceae.
Physciaceae I. Pannariaceae. Calicioid. Lichenicolous Agaricales: Hygrophoraceae (Arrhenia and
Lichenomphalia); Cantharellales: Clavulinaceae (Multiclavula) and Hydnaceae (Burgoa). Collema.
Moreover, in the framework of Iberian Lichen Flora project when there are a broad knowledge of
one lichen group and exist good collections it is possible to develop new studies in lichen taxonomy
based on combinations of phenotypic and DNA sequence data. This was the case of the genus Cladonia
which comprises nearly 500 species (85 in the Iberian Peninsula) worldwide distributed. They are conspicuous
element of many regions although easily recognized at genus level, the morphology and
chemical variability is poorly understood in several cases. This high morphological variability in the
genus Cladonia is probably an effect of the phenotypical plasticity induced by factors such as exposure
to light, temperature or humidity.
We resolved many taxonomic problems related with the morphological boundaries as C. convoluta
vs. C. foliacea, C. subulata vs. C. rei, C. coniocraea vs. C. ochrochlora, C. subturgida vs. C. iberica,
C. humilis group, C. cariosa group or C. gracilis group. Other groups are in study such as C. mediterranea
or C. furcata.
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