A Research On Desert Lichen Diversity In Shapotou Region Of The Tengger Desert, China

The ecology concept of lichen is stable symbiotic ecological communities composed byfungi and algae and/or cyanobacteria; the taxonomic concept, that is, the evolutionarysystematic position, is belonging to the systems of fungi, algae and cyanobacteria,respectively. In fact, the scientific name of lichen is fungi, which is also called lichenizedfungi. Lichens distribute widely in the world, such as the cold North and South poles, hotequator, high mountains, plains, moist soil, arid desert, and so on. We can also find themwhere there is not any other plant.Generally, desert lichens refer to the lichens growing in the desert area, which are mostlycrustose lichens, while fruticose and foliose lichens are relatively little.Shapotou region, belonging to the temperate steppe desert, locates in the southeast of theTengger Desert, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, on the edge of Yellow River,1300-1700min altitude, average annual temperature9.7℃, average annual wind speed2.8m s-1, droughtand windy climate. Shapotou region is a model of windproof and sand-fixation system, inwhich straw checkerboard barriers were used to supply the environment for the artificialplanting without irrigation by slowing the wind speed, being induced by the artificialvegetation, the microbiotic crust formed, and then succeeded into the main life form. Basedon that, Shapotou region got the honorable title of global protection "Global500Roll "appraised by the United Nations in1995. There are lots of lichens in microbiotic crust andgenerally exhibit dominant position. So desert lichens and microbiotic crust, as the importantpart of the desert ecosystem, have great ecological significance and play important roles insand fixation, moisture maintaing, and soil fertility improving, therefore, the research ofdesert lichen biodiversity has great significance in desert protection and management.As part of preliminary study of the desert microbiotic carpet project—artificialinoculation to build sand fixation protection system quickly, we have further studied thelichen species diversity, which provided the species resource information for the implementation of the biological carpet engineering. A comprehensive study was taken on theShapotou region specimens deposited in Herbarium Mycologicum AcademiaeSinicae-Lichenes (HMAS-L) based on morphological, anatomical, and chemical characters. Itwas found that there are24species, belonging to13family: Acarosporaceae (one genus, onespecies), Caliciaceae (two genera, three species), Candelariaceae (one genus, two species),Collemataceae (one genus, one species), Lecanoraceae (two genera, three species),Parmeliaceae (one genus, one species), Physciaceae (one genus, one species), Porinaceae (onegenus, one species), Psoraceae (one genus, one species), Ramalinaceae (two genera, twospecies), Teloschistaceae (four genera seven species), and Thelotremataceae (one genus, onespecies)；six orders: Acarosporales, Candelariales, Lecanorales, Ostropales, Peltigerales, andTeloschistales; besides, four species are new to china: Bacidia heterochroa, Porina aenea,Buellia alboatra, and Buellia venusta.There is detailed description on each species, and the photographs of all the species’thallus habit and some species’ spores have been provided in this study. The data obtainedfrom this research could provide helpful information for the futher systematic study of desertlichens, theoretical basis for the biodiversity protection and appication of biological resources,and accumulate data for editing and studying the lichen flora of China.