Tees-Swale trainees lichen identification

5 December 2024

As part of the Tees-Swale trainee programme, our Swaledale trainees recently went on a lichen identification course at Keld. This course enabled the trainees to find out more about lichen and the benefits for the landscape across the protected landscapes.

Ellie McKee:
I enjoyed the lichen ID course, it taught us about the many different types of lichens and how to identify them based on where they grew and physical features. I discovered that lichens are an indicator of clean air, playing important part of our ecosystem and are a symbiotic relationship between alga and fungi. Lichens provide a source of food for animals, protect rocks and trees from harsh weather and most importantly, they require carbon as a food source, therefore they play a vital role in carbon storage.

Attending this course has personally helped me build up my knowledge in ID skills which are vital for anyone working in conservation. I feel it is important we learn as much as we can about lichen so we can work on protecting them and ensuring our habitats contain diverse species.

Joely Newell:
Before the course I didn’t know anything about lichens other than seeing them on trees and drystone walls throughout Swaledale. As part of my role as the Community Engagement trainee for the Yorkshire Dales National Park, people often ask me what they are and I would like to give them more information.

On the course, I learnt that lichens are an made up of a fungus and an alga that live together permanently in a symbiotic relationship. I also learned the names of some species and know what I should be looking for to identify them.

After this course I now feel confident in identifying and pointing out various species of lichens when I take out groups across Swaledale.