Lichen species as element bioindicators for air pollution in the eastern United States of America

Abstract

Lichen element (N, S, metals) indicators of local air pollution load (a widely used technique) are recommended for five predefined regions covering central and southern parts of the eastern United States. The final recommendations integrate the advice of regional lichenologists, information from regional floras, and species abundance data from a United States Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis Program (FIA) lichen database for 11 of the 21 covered eastern states. Recommended species were frequent in their region, easy for nonspecialists to distinguish in the field after training, and easy to handle using clean protocols. Regression models of species abundance in FIA plots from five southeastern states vs. climate, air pollution (both from a regional lichen response model) and type of nearby landcover (from the National Land Cover Database) identified species' environmental limitations. Punctelia rudecta is recommended for cooler forested uplands of all regions, with three Physcia species combined and Punctelia missouriensis for isolated woodlands or urban areas of three regions. Parmotrema hypotropum and P. hypoleucinum combined (weak environmental limitation) or P. perforatum. and P. subrigidum combined (limited in more polluted areas) are recommended for warmer Coastal Plains in two regions each. Additional species are recommended for single regions. Each species must be quantitatively evaluated in each region, to demonstrate indication reliability in practice and to calculate element data conversions between species for region-wide bioindication.