The Lichen Flora of Hunan Province, China

The Lichen Flora of Hunan Province, China

Prof. Emeritus Timo Koponen, a well-known specialist of Asian bryophytes, has studied the bryophyte flora of Hunan Province since 1997. The initiative for his “Cryptogam Flora of Hunan Province” project came from the Forest Department of Hunan Province and subse­quent research has been carried out in cooperation between Chinese and Finnish scientists.

In 1999 the project was expanded to also include lichens. Subsequently thousands of lichen specimens have been collected from different parts of Hunan, which is one of the true biodiversity centers of the Northern Hemisphere.

An electronic lichen flora of Hunan Province will eventually be published in Pinkka. The first ‘stacks’, describing some cyanolichen genera (Coccocarpia, Leptogium) and calicioid lichens (Calicium, Chaenotheca) will be published in 2009.