SCIIENCE
Lucknow: They may look like little patches of moss on rocks or tree trunks, but lichens can tell scientists a great deal about the health of the environment. In a breakthrough, the CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (CSIR-NBRI) has discovered nine lichen species in Madhya Pradesh’s Maihar and Satna districts.
“Our findings show that the Vindhyachal region is home to a rich diversity of lichens, including many that were previously unrecorded from this area,” said Mishra, a CSIR-NBRI scientist and co-author of the study. Explaining the significance of the research, CSIR-NBRI director Dr Zabeer Ahmed said, “Lichens are sensitive indicators of environmental change, and their diversity provides valuable information about the health of an ecosystem. The study, conducted by Gaurav K. Mishra of CSIR-NBRI, Lucknow, along with Shweta Tiwari and Kanchan Awasthi of Maharishi University of Information Technology (MUIT), Lucknow, has been published in the international journal Vegetos. He added that lichens also play an important ecological role. They gradually break down bare rocks, aiding soil formation, while some species capture nitrogen from the atmosphere and make it available to plants.