Lichen Study
Mike Gentile and Sam Tormey
The lichen group spent the week studying lichen on the rock formations in Red Rocks Park. Lichen are a vegetative species that can live in environments that lack soil, and therefore are historically known as a pioneer species as well as a form of erosion control. This is because they can overtake areas where other life forms can't grow, and absorb water that would normally run off of rock faces. There are three types of lichen: crustose, foliose, and fruticose. Crustose lichens grow very close to the rock, and have no leaves. Foliose lichens are similar to crustose lichens, but they have small leaves which grow up from the rock. Fruticose lichens are more complex; they have little shoots growing out from the rock which often makes fruticose look like mini forests.
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A sample of Crustose. |
A sample of Foliose. |
A sample of Fruticose.
In their study, the group measured the amount of lichen, types of lichen, amount of light recieved, and direction the rock faced. They did three seperate faces at each formation, and collected data from three sites throughout the park. They hoped to find similarities and differences from which they could draw some conclusions. In measuring the amount of lichen, the group randomly measured a 1/4 square meter, and estimated the percent of that square that was covered. They also estimated the percent of total lichen that each type made up, and estimated the amount of light the face got in both the morning and evening. The results are shown in the table below:
Fraction of Rock |
Fraction of Total Lichen |
Fraction of Total Lichen |
Fraction of |
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Face Covered |
That is Crustose |
that is Foliose |
Overhead Coverage |
Direction | |
SITE 1 |
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| Face 1 | 0.62 |
0.75 |
0.25 |
0.7 |
West |
| Face 2 | 0.33 |
0.9 |
0.1 |
0.9 |
North-West |
| Face 3 | 0.73 |
0.6 |
0.4 |
0.8 |
South |
SITE 2 |
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| Face 1 | 0.83 |
0.75 |
0.25 |
0% in a.m./100% in p.m. |
East-Southeast |
| Face 2 | 0.43 |
0.4 |
0.6 |
0 |
East-Southeast |
| Face 3 | 0.81 |
0.85 |
0.15 |
0.6 |
East-Southeast |
SITE 3 |
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| Face 1 | 0.6 |
0.6 |
0.4 |
80% in a.m./40% in p.m. |
South-Southwest |
| Face 2 | 0.14 |
0.25 |
0.75 |
0.4 |
Directly Upward |
| Face 3 | 0.79 |
0.1 |
0.9 |
0.1 |
Upward |
SITE 4 |
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| Face 1 | 0.56 |
0.8 |
0.2 |
75% in a.m./0% in p.m. |
West-Southwest |
| Face 2 | 0.61 |
0.6 |
0.4 |
95% in a.m./30% in p.m. |
Directly Upward |
| Face 3 | 0.74 |
0.7 |
0.3 |
60% in a.m./10% in p.m. |
Southwest |
In analyzing the data, the group found an abundance of lichen in the park. The majority of the lichen was crustose, with foliose being the second most common type. Although there were a few splotches of fruticose, it's presence was not significant in the overall picture. Trends in the data showed that crustose was the most common on rock faces that recieved little light. On the other hand, foliose was the most common on rocks that recieved a lot of light. This makes sense because the leaves of the foliose would tend to like the sun more than the crustose. We didn't come up with any trends in the amount/type of lichen and its relation with the direction it faced; we therefore amounts of light was the main factor contributing to lichen growth. From our results we also found lichen in places where other species couldn't grow, and where erosion would normally occur, proving its importance in a balanced ecosystem. Overall we found lichen to be an important member of the Red Rocks community.
Measuring a 1/4 square meter to collect data from.
Sites where data was collected.
