Lichen biota of West Siberia

The author has surveyed the diversity of lichen biota of West Siberia and distribution of lichens over its two geographic parts: the West Siberian Plain and the mountain frame in the south of West Siberia. The diversity of lichen biota in entire West Siberia is currently estimated at 1845 species in 325 genera and 95 families. The diversity of the West Siberian Plain is estimated at 1421 species in 271 genera and 86 families, and that of the southern mountains of West Siberia, at 1682 species in 312 genera and 94 families.     

Bole epiphytic lichens as potential indicators of environmental change in subtropical forest ecosystems in southwest China

Lichen epiphytes are applied as excellent environmental indicators worldwide. However, very little is known about epiphytic lichen communities and their response to forest dynamics in subtropical China. This paper proposes the applications of the cover, diversity, and functional traits of epiphytic lichens to assess environmental changes associated with succession in subtropical forests of southwest China. Bole lichens were sampled from 120 plots of eight representative forest types in the Ailao Mountains. Total cover, species richness, diversity and community structure of bole lichens differed significantly among forest types, and the highest cover and diversity occurred in the Populus bonatii secondary forest (PBSF). Sixty-one indicator species were associated with particular forest types and more than 50% occurred in the PBSF. Both cover and diversity of most lichen functional groups varied regularly during forest succession. Lichen pioneer species were not displaced by competitively superior species as succession proceeds and cyanolichens were more prevalent in secondary forests. The results also highlight the importance of habitat variables such as canopy openness, host diversity, forest age, tree size, the size of the largest tree, tree density, and basal area on the lichen community. Consequently, our findings support the notion that epiphytic lichens, in terms of cover, diversity, species composition and functional traits can be used as effective indicators for large-scale and long-term forest monitoring. More importantly, the narrowly lobed foliose group was the best candidate indicator of environmental conditions in this region. The combined application of lichen indicator species and functional groups seemed to be a more reliable and more powerful method for monitoring forest dynamics in subtropical montane ecosystems.     

Lichen diversity and composition in Araucaria forests and tree monocultures in southern Brazil

Tree plantations for commercial use have been replacing native ecosystems all over the world. We investigated how forest conversion to plantations of exotic and native tree species may influence lichen diversity and composition in a southern Brazilian landscape. The lichen community from the National Forest of São Francisco de Paula was studied using three stands of each of the four vegetation types: native Araucaria forest and plantations of Araucaria, Pine and Eucalyptus trees. All plantation stands were surrounded by native Araucaria forest, were of smaller size and were allowed to endure longer than commercially managed plantations. Lichen species and their cover abundance were recorded on tree trunks from 30 to 150 cm above soil level in ten host-trees that were randomly selected in each replication. Seventy-eight lichen species, from 18 genera and 9 families, were registered. Conversion of native forest to plantations of exotic tree species altered species composition by reducing the occurrence of shade tolerant lichens. Plantations of Araucaria angustifolia sustained the highest lichen diversity measured, because this is an excellent host species. These results suggest that a greater diversity of lichens can be preserved in the landscape, if plantations of the exotic Pinus and Eucalyptus genera are replaced by plantations of this native species.     

Vegetation of Barton Peninsula in the neighbourhood of King Sejong Station (King George Island,maritime Antarctic)

Plant communities were studied on Barton Peninsula around King Sejong Station on King George Island, maritime Antarctic. The objective of this study was to document the occurrence and distribution of plant assemblages to provide the bases for monitoring the effects of environmental changes and human impact on the vegetation of this area. Approximately 47% of the investigated area was covered by vegetation. Crustose lichens showed the highest mean cover (21%) among vegetation components. The total mean cover of the four dominant taxa, together with the other three major subdominant components, i.e., Usnea spp., Andreaea spp. and Sanionia georgico-uncinata, was 78.2% of the total cover of all the species. Lichen cover and species diversity increased with altitude and the time of exposure from snow. Lichens contributed substantially more to the increased species density and diversity than did bryophytes. Ten plant communities were recognized within the study area. All of them belong to the Antarctic cryptogam tundra formation; they were grouped into four subformations: fruticose lichen and moss cushion subformation, crustose lichen subformation, moss carpet subformation and moss hummock subformation. The moss turf subformation was not found on this region. The Antarctic herb tundra formation was also not found; however, the populations of both Antarctic vascular plants have rapidly expanded around Barton Peninsula in recent years, which may allow development of the Antarctic herb tundra formation in the future.     

FREQUENCY,DIVERSITY AND ECOLOGICAL STRATEGIES OF EPIPHYTIC LICHENS IN THE SWISS CENTRAL PLATEAU AND THE PRE-ALPS

To identify representative quantitative criteria for the creation of a future Red List of epiphytic lichens, 849 trees in 132 long-term ecological observation plots in the Swiss Central Plateau and the Pre-Alps were surveyed by standard sampling. Based on the trees, frequency data of the lichen taxa observed are described by the log series model, indicating the controlling effect of few ecological factors. Based on the plots, four classes of scarcity, each comprising 25% of the species, were established. As a contribution to the development of a national, representative survey of lichens, α-diversity (species richness, species density) andβ-diversity (dissimilarity) were calculated in terms of region, vegetation formation, vegetation belt and for their combinations. Differences in lichen diversity between the Central Plateau and the Pre-Alps were caused by the bigger elevational range in the Pre-Alps, which resulted in a higher species richness. α-Diversity of forest and non-forest were similar, whereas each vegetation formation showed one third of its species restricted to it. The contributions to the total lichen diversity of crustose, foliose and fruticose as well as of generative and vegetative species was calculated. Specific features along the altitudinal gradient of vegetation belts emerged: the percentage of crustose and generative lichens declined with every altitudinal step, increased in fruticose and vegetative lichens, and was the same in foliose species.     

Significant decrease in epiphytic lichen diversity in a remote area in the European Alps,Austria

We present long-term (1993–2010) monitoring results of lichens from a remote site in Austria. Whereas gaseous pollution is negligible in this area, levels of long-range air pollution of S and N via rain and fog are high. Lichen cover on tree trunks have decreased significantly. Accordingly, we found that the population of all species had declined. The analyses demonstrated significant changes in lichen community composition. The lichen flora suffered a significant decrease in diversity. Our hypothesis is that the breakdown of epiphytic lichens is mainly due to eutrophication through long-term N deposition, and more particularly to ammonia in precipitation and in fog. Since many areas in the European Alps receive high wet deposition loads, a decrease in the abundance and diversity of epiphytic lichens is most probably a widespread phenomenon.     

Estimating plant abundance using inflated beta distributions: Applied learnings from a lichen–caribou ecosystem

Quantifying abundance and distribution of plant species can be difficult because data are often inflated with zero values due to rarity or absence from many ecosystems. Terrestrial fruticose lichens (Cladonia and Cetraria spp.) occupy a narrow ecological niche and have been linked to the diets of declining caribou and reindeer populations (Rangifer tarandus) across their global distribution, and conditions related to their abundance and distribution are not well understood. We attempted to measure effects related to the occupancy and abundance of terrestrial fruticose lichens by sampling and simultaneously modeling two discrete conditions: absence and abundance. We sampled the proportion cover of terrestrial lichens at 438 vegetation plots, including 98 plots having zero lichens. A zero‐inflated beta regression model was employed to simultaneously estimate both the absence and the proportion cover of terrestrial fruticose lichens using fine resolution satellite imagery and light detection and ranging (LiDAR) derived covariates. The probability of lichen absence significantly increased with shallower groundwater, taller vegetation, and increased Sphagnum moss cover. Vegetation productivity, Sphagnum moss cover, and seasonal changes in photosynthetic capacity were negatively related to the abundances of terrestrial lichens. Inflated beta regression reliably estimated the abundance of terrestrial lichens (R² = .74) which was interpolated on a map at fine resolution across a caribou range to support ecological conservation and reclamation. Results demonstrate that sampling for and simultaneously estimating both occupancy and abundance offer a powerful approach to improve statistical estimation and expand ecological inference in an applied setting. Learnings are broadly applicable to studying species that are rare, occupy narrow niches, or where the response variable is a proportion value containing zero or one, which is typical of vegetation cover data.     

Leaf demography and leaf traits of temperate-deciduous and tropical evergreen-broadleaved trees in a Mexican montane cloud forest

The spatial variation in epilithic lichen community structure was investigated as part of a larger study of the vegetation and ecology of the tall limestone cliffs within the Niagara Escarpment Biosphere Reserve in southern Ontario, Canada. The cover of all lichen taxa was visually estimated for a total of 199 samples taken from the top, middle, or bottom of the cliff face at five sites. Twelve environmental variables were also measured. Twenty-seven lichen taxa were identified on the samples. Multivariate ordinations of species composition (DCA, CCA, PCCA) revealed variation in community structure on multiple scales, but no groupings of sites that would have suggested the presence of several distinct species assemblages. A gradient in species composition from north to south, most clearly reflected in the decreasing cover of foliose and fruticose species, may reflect a gradient in human disturbance. There was also intermediate-scale patchiness in species composition in a horizontal plane across cliffs, but despite earlier claims made in the literature, no evidence of vertical zonation of the lichens on cliffs was found. Species composition also responded to small-scale factors possibly related to exposure, light, or moisture. Unlike community composition, the total cover of all lichens was homogeneous over large spatial scales and varied only on a small scale, illustrating that scale as well as resolution of a study may influence the ecological patterns seen. More than half of the species found on the Niagara Escarpment are rare on rock substrates elsewhere in southern Ontario, and two are new for North America (Candelariella heidelbergensis (Nyl.) Poelt and Lecanora perpruinosa Fröberg). The result that cliffs support a distinct flora containing many rare species suggests that they are a reservoir for biodiversity not just for vascular plants, but also for lichens.     

Forest edge-interior differentiation in the epiphytic lichen diversity of the forest steppe in the Khangai Mountains,Mongolia

Aims The effects of traditional land use by mobile livestock keepers on biodiversity in forest steppe ecotones are insufficiently studied. Epiphytes are an important part of forest plant diversity. Here we analyze differences in the diversity and composition of the epiphytic lichen vegetation between the edge and the interior of Siberian larch forests in the Khangai Mountains, western Mongolia, which are highly subdivided into patches. We asked whether the epiphytic lichen vegetation at the forest edge differs significantly from that in the interior, whether the edge is inhabited by more nitrophilous species than the interior and whether the density of nomad camps around the forest affects epiphytic lichen diversity.Methods Cover percentages of epiphytic lichen species were recorded from 20 trees per plot on 6 plots in the interior and 6 plots at the edge of Larix sibirica forests. The position of nomad summer camps was surveyed using Global Positioning System. Data were analyzed with pairwise significance tests, analysis of similarities, nonmetric multidimensional scaling and canonical correspondence analysis.Important findings The composition of the epiphytic lichen vegetation clearly differed between the two habitats, with more species being more frequent at the edge than in the interior. However, there was no difference in species richness (α-diversity). The epiphyte vegetation at the edge was more uniform and characterized by lower variation of tree-level α-diversity and lower β-diversity than in the interior. At the edge, only nitrophytic lichens were dominant, whereas in the interior, nitrophytes and acidophytes were among the dominant species. This pattern is probably attributable to the spatial heterogeneity of the intensity of forest grazing and was shown to be influenced by the density of nomad summer camps in the vicinity of the forests. Tree-level α-diversity increased with stem diameter, but high-diameter trees were rare. The results suggest that the present level of forest patchiness and the effect of forest grazing increases the diversity of epiphytic lichens on the landscape level, while logging of high-diameter trees reduces lichen diversity.     

The importance of host tree age, size and growth rate as determinants of epiphytic lichen diversity in boreal spruce forests

The amount of large and old trees has decreased in the boreal forests during the last centuries of forestry. Such trees are important habitats for epiphytic lichens and there is a growing concern for lichen species that are associated with large and old trees. However, only little is known about the relative importance of tree size versus age as determinants of lichen diversity. Here we have determined the size, age and growth rate of 157 Norway spruce trees and recorded the occurrence of epiphytic lichen species on their branches and lower stems. The study includes crustose lichens and was done in two old-growth forests in SE Norway. Tree age and tree size were the parameters that explained the largest part of epiphytic lichen diversity. Only the growth rate of the most recent time period, i.e. 1984–2004, showed a statistically significant relationship to diversity. There was no indication of a stabilising species number with increasing tree age. Slow-growing and old trees were, however, mainly of importance to the lichen species growing on stems, and this set of species were in general adversely affected by a large amount of branches. The opposite was the case for the species that were confined to branches as their diversity increased when the amount of branches increased. Our study adds empirical data to support the importance of large and old trees as bearers of biodiversity in boreal forests. Site preservation and patch retention of groups of old and large trees is recommended as measures to maintain epiphytic lichen diversity.     

Effects of Management on Lichen Species Richness,Ecological Traits and Community Structure in the Rodnei Mountains National Park (Romania)

Lichens are valuable bio-indicators for evaluating the consequences of human activities that are increasingly changing the earth’s ecosystems. Since a major objective of national parks is the preservation of biodiversity, our aim is to analyse how natural resource management, the availability of lichen substrates and environmental parameters influence lichen diversity in Rodnei Mountains National Park situated in the Eastern Carpathians. Three main types of managed vegetation were investigated: the transhumance systems in alpine meadows, timber exploitation in mixed and pure spruce forests, and the corresponding conserved sites. The data were sampled following a replicated design. For the analysis, we considered not only all lichen species, but also species groups from different substrates such as soil, trees and deadwood. The lichen diversity was described according to species richness, red-list status and substrate-specialist species richness. The variation in species composition was related to the environmental variables. Habitat management was found to negatively influence species richness and alter the lichen community composition, particularly for threatened and substrate-specialist species. It reduced the mean level of threatened species richness by 59%, when all lichen species were considered, and by 81%, when only epiphytic lichens were considered. Management-induced disturbance significantly decreased lichen species richness in forest landscapes with long stand continuity. The diversity patterns of the lichens indicate a loss of species richness and change in species composition in areas where natural resources are still exploited inside the borders of the national park. It is thus imperative for protected areas, in particular old-growth forests and alpine meadows, to receive more protection than they have received in the past to ensure populations of the characteristic species remain viable in the future.     

Vertical distribution of epiphytic lichens on Quercus laurina Humb. & Bonpl. in a remnant of cloud forest in the state of Veracruz,México

In the tropics, corticolous lichen richness and cover tend to increase from the trunk base to the top of the crown of trees. In this study we calculated the total beta diversity of the lichen community along a vertical gradient on Quercus laurina in Mexican cloud forest. By comparing the richness and cover of the lichens by zone, we show that foliose and fruticose lichens are a minor component of the total lichen species richness, but have a higher cover than the crustose lichens. Five zones were identified along each phorophyte (n = 15) with a diameter at breast height >40 cm. A total of 92 species were identified. Of these, 38% were found only in a single zone, 51% were shared between the different zones and 11% occurred across all zones. Species richness and cover increased from the lowest to the highest zones of the phorophytes. Dissimilarity in species composition between the zones could be explained by species replacement. An indicator species analysis revealed that only a few species, e.g. Hypotrachyna vexans, H. cf. sublaevigata and Ramalina cf. sinaloensis prefer a particular zone. The results show that the lichen community associated with Quercus laurina phorophytes is highly diverse and suggest that species richness and cover are related to the zone and the various growth forms.     

Determinants of Lichen Diversity in a Rain Forest Understory

Change in lichen diversity is often used as a bioindicator to estimate effects of atmospheric pollution, but natural variation in lichen cover and species richness can be very high. We examined the top-down effects of spore-consuming ants and the bottom-up effects of nutrient and light availability on lichen diversity associated with the leaf surface of the rain forest understory plant, Piper cenocladum. Plots containing P. cenocladum were randomly assigned to treatments in factorial experiments that included high and low light levels, nutrient enrichment, and presence and absence of the ant mutualist, Pheidole bicornis . At the conclusion of the experiments, plants were harvested and size of leaves, secondary metabolite content (amides), epiphyll cover, and the species richness of the lichens (which comprised 85% of the epiphyll community) were quantified. Epiphyll cover (mosses, liverworts, and lichens) was greater on plants that had ant-mutualists and balanced resources. Lichen species richness was greater for plants with balanced resources, particularly for those with high light availability. Relationships between toxins and lichen cover and richness were weak and unclear. In this system, natural sources of variation were reliable determinants of lichen diversity and both biotic and abiotic influences were important.     

Species richness of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens in dry grasslands: The effects of environment, landscape structure and competition

We studied the relative importance of local habitat conditions and landscape structure for species richness of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens in dry grasslands on the Baltic island of Öland (Sweden). In addition, we tested whether relationships between species richness and vegetation cover indicate that competition within and between the studied taxonomic groups is important. We recorded species numbers of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens in 4 m² plots (n=452), distributed over dry grassland patches differing in size and degree of isolation. Structural and environmental data were collected for each plot. We tested effects of local environmental conditions, landscape structure and vegetation cover on species richness using generalized linear mixed models. Different environmental variables explained species richness of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens. Environmental effects, particularly soil pH, were more important than landscape structure. Interaction effects of soil pH with other environmental variables were significant in vascular plants. Plot heterogeneity enhanced species richness. Size and degree of isolation of dry grassland patches significantly affected bryophyte and lichen species richness, but not that of vascular plants. We observed negative relationships between bryophyte and lichen species richness and the cover of vascular plants. To conclude, effects of single environmental variables on species richness depend both on the taxonomic group and on the combination of environmental factors on a whole. Dispersal limitation in bryophytes and lichens confined to dry grasslands may be more common than is often assumed. Our study further suggests that competition between vascular plants and cryptogams is rather asymmetric.     

Feasibility of active handheld NDVI sensors for monitoring lichen ground cover

Vegetation indices are corner stones in vegetation monitoring. However, previous field studies on lichens and NDVI have been based on passive sensors. Active handheld sensors, with their own light sources, enables high-precision monitoring under variable ambient conditions. We investigated the use of handheld sensor NDVI for monitoring pale lichen cover across three study sites from boreal heathlands to High Arctic tundra (62–79 °N), and compared it with Sentinel-2 satellite NDVI. NDVI decreased with increasing cover of pale lichens but the correlation between active and satellite NDVI varied between areas. NDVI values declined with lichen cover and ranged from 0.4–0.18 when lichen cover was above 40%. Active ground measurements of NDVI explained 81% of the variation in the satellite NDVI values in Svalbard (High Arctic), while the relationships were lower (∼30% explained variation) in boreal regions (Troms-Finnmark and Røros). We show that active sensors are feasible for extracting information from lichen-dominated vegetation.     

Impact of climate change on alpine vegetation of mountain summits in Norway

Climate change is affecting the composition and functioning of ecosystems across the globe. Mountain ecosystems are particularly sensitive to climate warming since their biota is generally limited by low temperatures. Cryptogams such as lichens and bryophytes are important for the biodiversity and functioning of these ecosystems, but have not often been incorporated in vegetation resurvey studies. Hence, we lack a good understanding of how vascular plants, lichens and bryophytes respond interactively to climate warming in alpine communities. Here we quantified long-term changes in species richness, cover, composition and thermophilization (i.e. the increasing dominance of warm-adapted species) of vascular plants, lichens and bryophytes on four summits at Dovrefjell, Norway. These summits are situated along an elevational gradient from the low alpine to high alpine zone and were surveyed for all species in 2001, 2008 and 2015. During the 15-year period, a decline in lichen richness and increase in bryophyte richness was detected, whereas no change in vascular plant richness was found. Dwarf-shrub abundance progressively increased at the expense of lichens, and thermophilization was most pronounced for vascular plants, but occurred only on the lowest summits and northern aspects. Lichens showed less thermophilization and, for the bryophytes, no significant thermophilization was found. Although recent climate change may have primarily caused the observed changes in vegetation, combined effects with non-climatic factors (e.g. grazing and trampling) are likely important as well. At a larger scale, alpine vegetation shifts could have a profound impact on biosphere functioning with feedbacks to the global climate.     

Lichen species richness is highest in non-intensively used grasslands promoting suitable microhabitats and low vascular plant competition

Lichens are very sensitive to habitat changes and their species richness is likely to decline under intensive land use. Currently, a comprehensive study analyzing lichen species richness in relation to land-use types, extending over different regions and including information on habitat variables, is missing for temperate grasslands. In three German regions we studied lichen species richness in 490 plots of 16 m² representing different land-use types, livestock types, and habitat variables. Due to the absence of low-intensity pastures and substrates such as woody plants, deadwood and stones, there were no lichens in the 78 plots in Schorfheide-Chorin. In the two other regions, the richness of lichen species was 45 % higher in pastures than in meadows, and 77 % higher than in mown pastures, respectively. Among the pastures, the richness of all lichen species was on average 10 times higher in sheep-grazed pastures than in the ones grazed by cattle or horses. On average, the richness of all lichen species increased by 3.3 species per additional microhabitat. Furthermore, the richness of corticolous lichens increased by 1.2 species with 10 % higher cover of woody plants, lignicolous lichen species richness increased by 4.8 species with 1 % higher cover of deadwood, and saxicolous lichen species richness increased by 1.0 species with 1 % higher cover of stones. Our findings highlight the importance of low-intensity land use for lichen conservation. In particular, the degradation of grasslands rich in microhabitats and the destruction of lichen substrates by intensification, and conversion of unfertilized pastures formerly grazed at low intensity to meadows should be avoided to maintain lichen diversity.     

Epiphytic lichen diversity and its dependence on bark chemistry in the northern Mongolian dark taiga

Epiphytic lichen diversity was studied in a dark taiga forest of Pinus sibirica, Abies sibirica and Picea obovata in the western Khentey Mountains, northern Mongolia. Though most lichen species occurred on all three tree species, lichen diversity was higher on Abies and Picea than on Pinus. On branches, lichen vegetation differed less between tree species than on the trunk. The occurrence of many Parmeliaceae species with a hydrophilic surface and of many species producing the dibenzofuran usnic acid gives evidence of the low deposition of acidic pollutants in the study area. The Mn content of bark, which is known to limit at high values the abundance of epiphytic lichens in coniferous forests of Europe and North America, is apparently not controlling the spatial distribution of epiphytic lichens in the dark taiga of Mongolia. This is attributed to the dry and cold winters in Mongolia, as high Mn is especially leached from the surface of trees under moist conditions at temperatures around the freezing point, when the contact between water droplets and the tree surface is particularly intensive. Such moist and cold weather conditions are frequent in most parts of the northern coniferous forests of Europe and North America, but are rare events in the most continental parts of Asia, i.e. in Mongolia and eastern Siberia.     

Cladonia lichens as the most effective and essential pioneers in strongly contaminated slag dumps

The epigeic lichen biota of ten post-smelting slag dumps were studied to identify the ecological importance of Cladonia species in spontaneous succession within artificial areas. Species diversity, abundance, constancy and cover indices were determined at the initial stages of vegetation establishment. Substrates under lichen vegetation were characterised in terms of the pH, organic C and total N content, C/N ratio and Zn, Pb, Cd and As concentration. Species occurrence and abundance indices were related to habitat type, enabling the ability to identify species-specific responses to environmental factors. Despite the unfavourable and artificial habitat conditions at dump sites, some Cladonia appear abundant and form swards, with Cladonia rei as a dominant species. They appear to be well-adapted for slag substrate and their special arrangement illustrative of site contamination. Certain sward-forming Cladonia lichens play a fundamental role as effective pioneers in the initial stage of succession and provide stable plant cover development.     

Environmental factors and ground disturbance affecting the composition of species and functional traits of ground layer lichens on grey dunes and dune heaths of Estonia

A unique, species‐rich and endangered lichen biota can be found on European coastal and inland sand dunes. However, it is increasingly affected by natural succession as well as by anthropogenic disturbances. We studied lichen diversity on the grey dunes and dune heaths of coastal and inland regions of Estonia. A total of 28 study plots were investigated; in each 0.1 ha study plot general environmental variables and anthropogenic disturbances were described and all epigeic lichen species were identified. We found 66 lichenized fungus (lichen) species, including several rare and ten red‐listed lichens. Multivariate analysis (DCA, CCA) was performed to examine gradients in species composition and to relate variation in species data to environmental factors. In addition, we used redundancy analysis (RDA) to relate variation in species’ trait composition to environmental factors. Species composition on grey dunes differed significantly from that on dune heaths. The characteristic species for grey dunes are, besides several Cladonia species, foliose lichens, e.g. Hypogymnia physodes, Parmelia sulcata and Peltigera spp. Also species’ traits composition was different for either habitat, indicating that sorediate lichens, foliose lichens, lichens with cyanobacterium as the main photobiont, and sparsely branched Cladonia species dominate on grey dunes, while esorediate, green‐algal, crustose and richly branched fruticose lichens are common on dune heaths. Soil pH was the most essential environmental variable for determining both species composition and species’ traits composition. The composition of lichen species was also significantly influenced by forest closeness, soil Mg content and cover of bare sand; the effect of ground disturbances was low compared to the effect of these environmental factors. To protect and conserve the species‐rich lichen biota, it is necessary to protect the dune habitats from building activity, to avoid overtrampling in recreation areas and to regularly remove shrubs and trees.