I just completed five months of my internship, and I’ve been extended another 5 months. Its incredible how time flies. I am still working on cataloging, databasing and shipping off Florida lichen collections. I am sure that next week I will finish shipping off the specimens and will complete this project. With the completion of this project I can proudly say that I know how to use Microsoft Access, and can work at an herbarium digitizing samples. This is a useful skill, since many herbaria are in the process of putting their records on the internet.
I am also working on a short academic paper on range extensions and documenting a few lichens new to North America. It is exciting to see how many discoveries and ideas for future research were generated from examining just 1,000 specimens. The discoveries are best documented by photos! Two species, Lecanora barkmaniana, and Coccocarpia filiformis are new to North America. There is also range extensions of 10 species, two of which are shown below. All photos taken by Pamela Hess.
Coccocarpia prostrata
Second collection in North America
Endocarpon petrolepideum– growing on snail shell!
