The lichen vegetation associated with areas of late snow-lie in the Scottish Highlands

Abstract

Abstract:The lichen vegetation associated with areas of late snow-lie in the Scottish Highlands is described and three lichen-dominated communities recognized; from the tops of large boulders, from small pebbles, and from damp soil. The first of these is exclusive to this habitat throughout the Highlands, whereas the other two are restricted to areas of late snow-lie in the Eastern Highlands but are of more widespread occurrence further west. The community from damp soil has affinities with the Solorinion croceae Klement, which occupies a similar ecological niche in Central Europe, but the two other communities are apparently undescribed. The importance of the eu-oceanic climate of the Western Highlands in determining the distribution of these communities is emphasized. The new combination Micarea cinerea f. tenuispora (D. Hawksw. & Poelt) Fryday is made for the anamorph of M. cinerea (Schaer.) Hedl.