Fall Foray to Athens County
September 24-25, 2022
Left to right: Jim Toppin, Dean Porter, Janet Traub, Ray Showman, Kathy Long, Bob Long, Becky Smucker, Shaun Pogacnick, Barb Andreas, Tomás Curtis, Megan Osika, Joshua Copen, Brandon Ashcraft, Bob Klips -photo by Bob Klips
On a nice fall Saturday morning, we met at Marie J. Desonier State Nature Preserve, near Coolville, Ohio, for a day of collecting. The 491-acre preserve “encompasses a variety of habitats typical of Appalachian Ohio. The area is diverse in vegetation and ranges from various successional stages to mature forests in the deep ravines and on the steep hillsides. The area is dissected by Jordan Run, a tributary of the Hocking River, and has steep topography, varying from 680 to 900 feet in elevation. Large beech and oak trees are found in the cool moist ravines while the drier uplands are dominated by oak hickory forests, typical of the region.” (odnr.gov).
According to the Ohio Geology Interactive Map, the bedrock of the uplands at the preserve is the Dunkard Group of Permian and/or Pennsylvanian age. It is mainly sandstone, siltstone and shale, with minor amounts of limestone and coal. In the ravines, the bedrock is the Monongahela Group of Pennsylvanian age. It consists of shale, siltstone, limestone, sandstone and economic coal beds.
After the day of collecting we spent the evening at Parkersburg, West Virginia, where we had a microscope room at the Quality Inn.
On Sunday morning we collected at the Utah Ridge area of Wayne National Forest. The bedrock here is the Conemaugh Group of Pennsylvanian age, consisting of shale, siltstone, sandstone, mudstone and lesser amounts of limestone and coal.
We had planned to collect all morning at Utah Ridge, but severe weather forced us to retreat from the ridge. We then stopped at the Glen Ebon area of Wayne National Forest. The bedrock there is the Allegheny and Pottsville Groups Undivided, of Pennsylvanian age. It consists of shale, siltstone, sandstone, conglomerate, and small amounts of limestone, clay, flint, and coal. We explored vertical rock faces and other habitats before heading home.
In all, we found 77 lichen taxa, 60 of which are new records for Athens County. For bryophytes, we found 78 moss taxa (18 new county records) and 16 liverworts (8 new county records).
SPECIES LIST
Abbreviations:
N = new record for Athens County
DE = Desonier State Nature Preserve
UR = Utah Ridge, Wayne National Forest GE = Glen Ebon, Wayne National Forest
LICHENS
Anisomeridium polypori N DE
Arthonia sp. DE
Bacidia schweinitzii N DE
B. sorediata N DE
Bacidina arnoldiana N DE
Biatora pontica DE
B. printzenii N DE
Botryolepraria lesdainii N DE
Buellia erubescens N DE
Caloplaca cerina N DE
Candelaria concolor N UR
Candelariella efflorescens N DE
Catillaria fungoides N DE
C. nigroclavata N DE
Chaenothecopsis debilis N DE
Chrysothrix caesia N DE
Cladonia apodocarpa N UR
C. macilenta N UR
C. ochrochlora N DE
C. parasitica N DE
C. peziziformis N UR
C. squamosa N DE
Crespoa crozalsiana N DE
Dictyocatenulata alba N DE
Flavoparmelia baltimorensis UR
F. caperata DE/UR
Graphis scripta DE
Heterodermia speciosa N DE
Hypotrachyna livida DE
H. minarum N DE
H. showmani DE
Lecanora appalachensis N DE
L. hybocarpa N DE
L. strobilina DE
L. thysanophora N DE
Lecidea varians N DE
Lepra pustulata DE
Lepraria caesiella N DE
L. cryophila N DE
L. finkii DE
L. hodkinsoniana N DE
L. sp. DE
Micarea prasina N DE
M. soralifera DE
Micareopsis irriguata N DE
Mycobilimbia berengeriana N DE
Myelochroa aurulenta N DE/UR
M. galbina N UR
M. metarevoluta N DE
Nadvornikia sorediata N DE
Opegrapha vulgata N DE
Parmelia sulcata N DE/UR
Parmotrema gardneri N DE
P. hypotropum DE/UR
Peltigera canina N UR
P. phyllidiosa N DE
Pertusaria pustulata N DE
Phaeocalicium polyporaeum N DE
Phaeophyscia pusilloides DE/UR
P. rubropulchra DE/UR
Phlyctis petraea N DE
Physcia americana DE
P. millegrana UR
P. pumilior DE
P. stellaris DE/UR
Pseudosagedia cestrensis N DE
Pseudosagedia sp. DE
Punctelia caseana N DE/UR
P. rudecta DE/UR
Pyxine sorediata DE
P. subcinerea N DE/UR
Scoliciosporum pensylvanicum N DE
Scytinium dactylinum DE
S. lichenoides N UR
Strigula jamesii N DE
Usnea mutabilis N DE
Viridothelium virens N DE
Lichenicolous fungus, parasitic on Lecanora
strobilina growing on bark of Prunus
serotina
MOSSES
Amblystegiaceae
Amblystegium serpens N DE
Campylium chrysophyllum DE/UR
Hygroamblystegium varium DE
Anomodontaceae
Anomodon attenuatus DE
A. minor DE
Haplohymenium triste DE
Aulacomniaceae
Arrhenopterum heterostichum DE
Claopodium rostratum DE
Bartramiaceae
Bartramia pomiformis DE/GE
Philonotis fontana N DE
Brachytheciaceae
Brachythecium acuminatum N GE
B. falcatum DE
B. laetum DE
B. plumosum N DE/GE
B. rivulare DE
Bryhnia graminicolor DE
Bryoandersonia illecebra DE
Oxyrrhynchium hians DE/UR
Bryaceae
Bryum pseudotriquetrum DE
Rhodobryum ontariense N DE
Callicladiaceae
Callicladium haldanianum GE
C. imponens DE
Climaciaceae
Climacium americanum DE
Dicranaceae
Dicranum scoparium DE
Orthodicranum fulvum DE
O. montanum DE/GE
O. viride UR/GE
Diphysciaceae
Diphyscium foliosum DE
Entodontaceae
Entodon cladorrhizans DE
E. seductrix DE/UR
Ephemeraceae
Ephemerum crassinervium N DE
Fissidentacaeae
Fissidens adianthoides N DE
F. bryoides DE
F. bushii N DE
F. dubius DE
F. minutulus DE
F. osmundioides DE
F. subbasilaris N DE
F. taxifolius DE
Funariaceae
Physcomitrium serratum UR
Grimmiaceae
Schistidium apocarpum UR
Hypnaceae
Campylophyllum hispidulum UR
Platygyrium repens DE/UR
Taxiphyllum deplanatum N DE
T. taxirameum N DE
Leptodontaceae
Forsstroemia trichomitria N DE
Leskeaceae
Leskea gracilescens DE/UR/GE
Leucobryaceae
Leucobryum albidum N DE
L. glaucum N DE
Leucodontaceae
Leucodon julaceus DE
Mniaceae
Plagiomnium ciliare DE
P. cuspidatum DE/UR
Pohlia nutans GE
P. wahlenbergii DE
Orthotrichaceae
Orthotrichum ohioense N DE/UR
Ulota crispula Bruch DE
Plagiotheciaceae
Plagiothecium cavifolium GE
P. laetum DE
Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans GE
Pottiaceae
Barbula unguiculata DE/UR
Gymnostomum aeruginosum DE
Hymenostylium recurvirostrum DE/GE
Hyophila involuta N DE
Tortula porteri DE
Tortella humilis UR
T. tortuosa N DE
Polytrichaceae
Atrichum angustatum GE
A. crispulum DE
Pogonatum pensilvanicum DE
Polytrichastrum ohioense DE
Ptychomitriaceae
Campylostelium saxicola GE
Pylaisiaceae
Calliergonella curvifolia DE
C. lindbergii DE
Homomallium adnatum UR
Pylaisiadelphaceae
Pylaisiadelpha tenuirostris DE
Sematophyllaceae
Sematophyllum demissum DE
Thuidiaceae
Thuidium delicatulum DE
LIVERWORTS
Calypogeiaceae
Calypogeia muelleriana N DE/GE
Cephaloziaceae
Cephalozia bicuspidata N GE
Conocephalaceae
Conocephalum salebrosum DE
Fossombroniaceae
Fossombronia cristula N DE
Frullaniaceae
Frullania asagrayana DE
F. eboracensis N DE/UR
F. sp. DE
Jubulaceae
Jubula hutchinsiae N DE
Lejeuneaceae
Cheilolejeunea clypeata N DE
Cololejeunea biddlecomiae N DE
Lophocoleaceae
Lophocolea heterophylla DE
Pelliaceae
Pellia epiphylla DE/GE
Radulaceae
Radula obconica DE
Scapaniaceae
Diplophyllum apiculatum DE
Scapania nemorea DE/GE
Solenostomataceae
Solenostoma crenuliforme N DE
Trichocoleaceae
Trichocolea tomentella DE