Name the New Lichen Species!
Imagine having a living species named after yourself. Well, now is your chance!
Recently, botanical researcher Trevor Goward discovered a new lichen species on one of the properties TLC is working to protect through the Clearwater Wetlands and Wildlife Corridor Campaign . Since then, its identity as an undescribed species has been supported by two teams of molecular researchers working in Finland and Spain.
According to scientific protocol, the right to give a new species its scientific name goes to the person who describes it, but in this case Goward has offered to auction off the naming rights to raise funds for the Clearwater Wetlands and Wildlife Corridor Campaign. When completed, the project will include a permanent wildlife corridor across the Upper Clearwater, the protection of over 130 acres, including 67 acres of wetlands, and a 10-acre meadow that is home to Canada’s most diverse population of Moonwort Ferns (Botrychium spp.).
“Having your name linked to a living species is a legacy that lasts”, says Goward. “I whole-heartedly support efforts to set aside biologically critical portions of B.C.’s forestlands. Putting my new species up for auction for this highly-deserving environmental organization allows me to give something back to my home province.”
The highest bidder will earn the right to name this new lichen – whether after loved ones, themselves, or whomever they choose. President Barak Obama has a lichen names after him (Caloplaca obamae), why not you?
Place your bid today by calling 1-877-485-2422!
Current bid $17,900 by the Randy Sulyma Memorial Lichen Naming Campaign.
Auction Closes 5 p.m. PST, December 15, 2011. All bids made on the final day must be in increments of $500 or more.
The auction will close at 5pm sharp. However, if there are bids entered within the last 5 minutes of the closing time, then the auction will go into overtime. The auction will be extended until there are no further bids for a continuous 5 minutes. All bidders will be contacted immediately in the last 5 minutes with the final bids by phone or email.
So what is a lichen anyways?
Lichens are small, stationary organisms often mistaken for plants, but better thought of as cooperative (symbiotic) unions of fungi and algae. Instead of invading or scavenging like other fungi, lichen fungi live off sugars from tiny photosynthetic algal cells maintained within the body of the lichen. Lichens are sometimes thought of as fungi that have discovered agriculture.
The importance of lichens:
Many lichens are sensitive to pollution and disturbance and become rare in urbanized and industrialized landscapes. The conversion of old-growth forests to tree plantations is taking a particularly heavy toll on the abundance and diversity of lichens in British Columbia. Some lichens provide critical winter food for animals like mountain caribou in B.C.’s inland rainforests and black-tailed deer in B.C.’s coastal rainforests.
About the new lichen:
Lichens come in many shapes and sizes. The lichen on loan to TLC is a Parmelia or “Crottle Lichen”, consisting of strap-like lobes pale grayish above and black below. It’s a small but perky species that inhabits the branches of trees, and grows in B.C.’s inland rainforests like the Clearwater Valley, where TLC is working with Goward to create a critical wildlife corridor for southern Wells Gray Park.
