New lichen species discovered in Keralam’s Mathikettan Shola National Park

Researchers have discovered a new species of lichen, Buellia maharajensis , in Mathikettan Shola National Park. This marks the fourth lichen variety discovered within the park, near Santhanpara in Idukki.

A five-member team made the discovery during a lichen diversity survey, and their findings were recently published in international journal Taiwania.

The newly discovered species is a saxicolous lichen that grows directly on rock surfaces and was recorded at an elevation of approximately 1,351 m.

The study was co-authored by Stephen Sequeira, retired associate professor, alongside senior research fellow Aswathi Anilkumar and research fellow Arun Christy associated with the Lichenology laboratory at the Post Graduate and Research Department of Botany, Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam. The team also included Siljo Joseph of the KSCSTE–Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI), as well as Sanjeeva Nayaka and Roshinikumar Ngangom from the CSIR–National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), Lucknow.