A contribution to the lichenological knowledge of Armenia
authors
Abstract: A small, sporadic collection of lichens and lichenicolous fungi in 11 sites of Armenia was carried out in late summer 2024, producing a list of 145 infrageneric taxa, 43 of which proved to be new to Armenia. They are published here as a contribution to a forthcoming new checklist for the country.
Zusammenfassung: Eine kleine, sporadische Sammlung von Flechten und lichenicolen Pilzen an elf Standorten in Armenien wurde im Spätsommer 2024 durchgeführt. Die Studie der Belege ergab eine Liste von 145 infragenerischen Taxa, von denen sich 43 als neu für Armenien erwiesen. Sie werden hier als Beitrag zu einer demnächst erscheinenden neuen Checkliste für das Land veröffentlicht.
Key words: Biodiversity, Caucasus, Lichens, Lichenicolous fungi
Introduction
A first short account on the lichenological investigations in Armenia was provided by Harutyunyan & Mayrhofer (2009). Later, Harutyunyan et al. (2011) produced a modern catalogue of the lichens of Armenia, listing 422 infrageneric taxa, based on published records as well as some unpublished specimens kept at the herbaria GZU and W. In more recent years, records of lichens for Armenia were published in different papers (e.g. ***ARSEN), bringing the total number of infrageneric taxa known for the country to 626 (ARSEN).
In the late summer 2024, the Authors had the opportunity to carry out some field work in different parts of Armenia surveying further localities. This visit mainly focused on a study of photobionts along altitudinal gradients, where samples of lichens were collected. The analysis of the collected material revealed the presence of many taxa which proved to be new to Armenia, which prompted us to publish the present paper, intended as a further contribution to the lichenological knowledge of the country, before the planned publication of a forthcoming second and more complete checklist.