Lichen preservation in amber: morphology, ultrastructure, chemofossils, and taphonomic alteration

Hartl, C.; Schmidt, Alexander R.; Heinrichs, Jochen; Seyfullah, Leyla J.; Schäfer, Nadine; Gröhn, Carsten; Rikkinen, Jouko; Kaasalainen, Ulla

doi:10.5194/fr-18-127-2015

Cited by 24 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…The first lichen fossils that can confidently be assigned to modern fungal lineages are from European Palaeogene amber, the fossilized resin of ancient conifers. Two possible lichens from Baltic amber were already published in the nineteenth century [17][18][19] , but since then only seven additional specimens have been reported from European ambers 11,12,[20][21][22] . Five additional lichen fossils have been described from the Miocene 13,23-25 .…”

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confidence: 98%

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Diversity and ecological adaptations in Palaeogene lichens

2017

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Lichens are highly specialized symbioses between heterotrophic fungi and photoautotrophic green algae or cyanobacteria. The mycobionts of many lichens produce morphologically complex thalli to house their photobionts. Lichens play important roles in ecosystems and have been used as indicators of environmental change. Here we report the finding of 152 new fossil lichens from European Palaeogene amber, and hence increase the total number of known fossil lichens from 15 to 167. Most of the fossils represent extant lineages of the Lecanoromycetes, an almost exclusively lichen-symbiotic class of Ascomycota. The fossil lichens show a wide diversity of morphological adaptations that attached epiphytic thalli to their substrates, helped to combine external water storage with effective gas exchange and facilitated the simultaneous reproduction and dispersal of both partners in symbiosis. The fossil thallus morphologies suggest that the climate of European Palaeogene amber forests was relatively humid and most likely temperate.

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confidence: 98%

“…Fossilized lichens have appeared to be extremely rare, with only 15 unambiguous fossils described so far [10][11][12][13] . The oldest lichen fossils are known from the Early Devonian [14][15][16] , and one Mesozoic fossil has been described from the Early Cretaceous 10 .…”

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confidence: 99%

Diversity and ecological adaptations in Palaeogene lichens

2017

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“…In fact, three main groups of lichens have been recognized and reported in Qatar: (1) crustose lichens, (2) fruticose lichens, and (3) foliose lichens [4]. There are many methods of identification, however, the morphology and ultrastructure have been widely utilized around the globe [62].…”

Section: Studies Of Biological Soil Crusts (Bsc)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological Soil Crusts and Extremophiles Adjacent to Native Plants at Sabkhas and Rawdahs, Qatar: The Possible Roles

Al‐Thani¹,

Yasseen²

2018

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Several studies have investigated the biology of native plants (halophytes and xerophytes), biological soil crusts (BSC), as well as the associated and adjacent microorganisms. These studies concentrated on their eco-physiological aspects as well as the possible roles they might play in various life activities and industries. This article presents the mechanisms adopted by these living organisms to cope with the harsh environment, and the possible roles microorganisms might play to support native plants, some important examples from the flora of Qatar are presented to show these mechanisms. Special attention has been paid to the senescence and death of leaves or whole plants, since this strategy has been considered as an important option for escaping extreme environmental conditions. Discussion about solute accumulation (organic and inorganic) in all native living organisms in general and in microorganisms in particular, could result to further investigation to clarify their roles in such an ecosystem. Some case studies have been reported to discuss the ecological aspects at two main types of habitats in Qatar; Rawdahs and Sabkhas were chosen to show how native living organisms adapt in these habitats. This study discussed the general identification of BSC and microorganisms, as well as their possible roles in the soil biota. The possible methods and mechanisms exhibited by extremophiles to support native plants in coping with saline and arid lands have also been reported in this article. This study also discussed the recent outlook about the origin of metabolic activities in these living organisms to support the growth of native plants under stress conditions.

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“…Jochen not only embraced this challenge, but also expanded the task by placing the results from his research on amber-preserved fossils into a broader evolutionary context. His research on amber fossils resulted in more than 40 papers on liverworts and mosses, as well as ferns, fungi, and lichens (e.g., Hartl et al 2015;Heinrichs et al 2015b;Kaasalainen et al 2015;Schneider et al 2016). Many of these papers have opened new avenues of research and have set standards in the investigation of amber fossils and their incorporation in phylogenetics.…”

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confidence: 99%