The California Lichen Society

The official California Lichen Society page is now being maintained at Californialichens.org

Revised Catalog of Lichens, Lichenicoles, and Allied Fungi in California by Shirley Tucker and Bruce Ryan now available


The California Lichen Society seeks to promote the appreciation, conservation, and study of the lichens. The focus of the Society is on California, but its interests include the entire western part of the continent.


The Bulletin of the California Lichen Society, which is published twice a year, welcomes manuscripts on technical topics in lichenology relating to western North America and on conservation of lichens, as well as news of lichenologists and their activities. Technical articles are peer-reviewed. Back issues are on line.
Subscription and membership information.


  1. Announcements:

    1. Upcoming events
    2. The California Lichen Society now has an email discussion group and website for latebreaking news and notes for the membership and forum for discussion amongst the membership. To join the group, go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CaliforniaLichens and click on 'join this group'. Because this is a yahoogroup, you will be asked to 'sign up now' with a yahoo user ID and password if you do not already have one.
    3. Red List of California Lichens:
      an interactive forum for assembling and maintaining a list of rare and endangered California lichens. The original list was published in the Bulletin. Preliminary List of Rare California Lichens by David L. Magney. Bulletin of the California Lichen Society 6: 21-27. 1999. The Red list of California Lichens is undergoing significant changes by the CALS Conservation Committee. The revised list will be available soon.
    4. The CALS poster is available for sale. Contact Janet Doell at rdoell @ sbcglobal .net for copies. $5.00, $7.00 if mailed. To order, please send a check made out to the California Lichen Society to Janet Doell, 1200 Brickyard Way #302, Pt. Richmond, CA 94801
    5. Lichen name verification and author lookup based on Theodore Esslinger's North American Checklist
    6. New books
      • 'Lichens of North America' by Irwin Brodo, Sylvia and Stephen Sharnoff is now available. This is the first accessible and authoritative guidebook to lichens of the North American continent. There are beautiful color photographs, descriptions, distribution maps and keys for identifying the most common, conspicuous, or ecologically significant species. The book focuses on 805 foliose, fruticose and crustose lichens and presents information on another 700 species in keys or notes. The comprehensive introduction discusses the biology, structure, uses and ecological significance of lichens.
      • "The Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region", is out. It includes southern California. There is a a description of the book and excerpts as well as ordering information at http://ces.asu.edu/ASUlichens/Sonoran/Flora.html.
      • Mini Guide to some Common California Lichens. 2nd edition
        Photography by Richard Doell and text by Janet Doell.
        The mini guide measures 3 3/4" X 2 3/4" and fits neatly into pocket or backpack. It is designed as an introduction to lichens for anyone interested in the natural world. Each of the 41 color photos of California lichens is accompanied by a descriptive text. The introduction tells what lichens are and describes the three groups into which they are roughly divided. The book does not deal with chemistry or microscopic characters other than those that can be seen with a hand lens.
            The mini guide is available for $12 (tax included) at a CALS event or $14 if mailed to you. To order, please send a check made out to the California Lichen Society to Janet Doell, 1200 Brickyard Way #302, Point Richmond, CA 94801.

        CALS now has a second mini guide for sale, this one for Southern California lichens. Similar to the CALS mini guide to some common California Lichens in size and organization, the photos in the CALS mini guide to some Southern California Lichens were taken especially for this book at over 25 Southern California locations. Photography by Richard Doell, text by Janet Doell.
        Price $12.00, $14.00 if mailed. Please send check made out to the California Lichen Society to Janet Doell, 1200 Brickyard Way #302, Pt. Richmond, CA 94801.

      • Baron, George. Understanding lichens. 1999. RP [Richmond Publishing Co.], Box 963, Slough SL2 3RS, UK (rpc@richmond.co.uk). iv, 92 pp., ill. (some col.), ISBN 085546-252-3 (PB), £9.95, £0.70 postage U.K., £1.00 foreign. [Contents: intro; 4 col. pls.; what is a lichen?; thallus; growth forms; repro., dispersal; physiol.; lichens and their environ.; amateur study; uses; class.; biblio.; index. A handy, nicely written introductory guide, w/ 49 B&W figs., 4 col. pls. w/ 24 figs. for 24 common spp.] noticed by Rudi Schmid
    7. Other sites:

    Links checked Oct. 30, 2000
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