Lichens and Air Pollution

Read the article The Microbial World: Lichens at the following link
http://archive.bio.ed.ac.uk/jdeacon/microbes/lichen.htm and chapter 25 in your text book and then
answer the following questions and do the exercise before class.

Pre-Activity Questions

1. Fungal cells are different from animals cells in that they have
a. cell membranes.
b. cell membranes made of phospholipids.
c. cell walls made of chitin.
d. cell walls made of cellulose.
e. true membrane bound nuclei.

2. The symbiotic relationship between the organisms in a lichen would best be described as
____________ .
a. commensality
b. mutualistic
c. parasitic
d. saprophytic
e. par mutualistic

3. What two organisms comprise a lichen?

a. fungus and a bacterium
b. fungus and an alga or cyanobacterium
c. alga and a bacterium
d. alga and a vascular plant
e. fungus and a vascular plant

4. Lichens are very sensitive to __________ pollution.

a. air
b. thermal
c. soil
d. noise

A lichen is a symbiotic association between a fungus and a green alga or a cyanobacterium. They exist
in a variety of different habitats including extreme environments such as deserts and the arctic. Even
though lichens are able to survive in these harsh environments, they are very sensitive indicators of air
pollution and are some of the first organisms to be eliminated from an area when the air quality begins
to decline. Lichens are damaged by many types of air pollutants, but are especially sensitive to sulfur
dioxide (SO2) which is often found in emissions from industrial and urban sources. One reason that
lichens are so sensitive to these types of pollutants is that they do not have roots and have therefore
evolved to absorb available nutrients and other elements directly from their surroundings, including
dissolved materials in rainwater. In other words, they act like sponges and therefore absorb and retain
not only necessary nutrients but harmful materials as well.
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Imagine that you are an ecologist and you have discovered that lichens on the trees in the area where
you live are dying off. In this activity you have been hired by an environmental advocacy group and will
be explaining to local government officials (city council) what lichens are and how they can be used as
biological indicators of air quality because of their sensitivity to air pollution. You must convince them
to add more stringent air quality standards for emissions from a nearby oil refinery that is releasing SO2
into the air. Work in groups to explore your role in guiding people to make decisions about air pollution
standards based on the use of lichens as biological indicators of air pollution.
______________________________________________________________________________

1. Description of Lichens: Suppose you are meeting with the city council. Your first task is to give
them a description of what lichens are. Be sure to very briefly describe the symbiotic relationship
between the two organisms that make up lichens.

Group Members (print name and sign): _________________________________

_______________________________ Facilitator
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________

2. Sensitivity of Lichens to Pollution: Next, you must explain to the council how and why lichens can
be used as biological indicators of air pollution problems. To do this, you must first describe how
lichens take up nutrients from their surroundings and why this makes them more vulnerable to air
pollution than plants. Then describe what it could mean as far as ecosystem health if the data
indicate that air pollution is causing damage to the health of lichens.

Group Members (print name and sign): __________________________

_______________________________ Facilitator
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
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3. Graphical Results: Using the graph paper below, draw two graphs to display for the city council to
illustrate the results of your research pertaining to sulfur dioxide (SO2), lichens and the oil refinery.
On both graphs, distance from the oil refinery should be plotted on the X axis. On one graph, the Y
axis should be sulfur concentration in lichens (as an indication of how much SO2 has been absorbed).
On the other graph, the Y axis should be % lichen cover on the tenth-year segments of alder
branches. The data for your graphs is presented below in a table. Make sure to label your axes
appropriately so that your audience will understand the graphs.

Group Members (print name and sign): _________________________________

_______________________________ Facilitator
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________

Distance from refinery % lichen cover on Sulfur concentration in

(Km) alder branches lichens (ppm)
1.8 1 500
2.1 5 420
2.8 16 350
3.5 25 220
4.5 45 100
Data modified from Ronald J. Taylor and Margaret A. Bell. 1983. Effects of SO, on the Lichen
Flora in an Industrial Area Northwest Whatcom County, Washington. Northwest Science
57:157-166
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4. Implications of Data: In the space below, summarize the implications of the graphs above as far as
sulfur dioxide pollution and lichens are concerned. Be sure to use language that the council will
understand. At this point you should make your case for more stringent air quality standards if your
data indicate that more stringent standards would potentially improve ecosystem health. Remind
the council that the lichens in this study are being used as a sensitive indicator species. In this
context, explain to the council why lichens are important even though they as individuals may not
be very concerned about the fate of these non-glamorous organisms.

Group Members (print name and sign): _________________________________

_______________________________ Facilitator
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
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Post-Activity Assignment -- Lichens

1. What type of relationship was seen between sulfur concentration in lichens and distance from the
oil refinery?
A. direct
B. positive
C. sulfur concentration increased with distance away from the refinery
D. sulfur concentration decreased with distance away from the refinery
E. There was no correlation between sulfur concentration and distance from refinery

2. What are the overall implications of the data that you presented to the city council?
A. SO2 from the refinery is causing a decline in lichen populations in areas close to the refinery and
more stringent air quality standards should be enacted
B. SO2 from the refinery does not seem to be causing any harm to the lichens in the area
C. Since sulfur concentrations in the lichens are directly related to distance from the refinery, no
real conclusions can be made
D. Even though sulfur concentrations in lichens are higher nearer the refinery, there is no
relationship between sulfur concentrations and % lichen cover
E. Sulfur concentration has no discernable effect on the lichens so any decline must be due to
human activities

3. What does the alga or cyanobacterium provide for the fungi in the lichen symbiotic relationship?
A. water only
B. minerals only
C. organic molecules and oxygen
D. organic molecules and carbon dioxide
E. carbon dioxide, water and minerals

4. The fungal partner in a lichen is called a mycobiont whereas the algal partner is called:
A. Glycobiont
B. Halobiont
C. Phycobiont
D. Mycorrhizae
E. Lichenobiont

Group Members (print name and sign):

___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________