Conservationists are racing against time to protect rare flora and fauna facing extinction in the last remaining temperate rainforests of the UK. These lush woodlands, mainly along the western coasts, harbour unique lichens found nowhere else on Earth. The decline of these rainforests, attributed to deforestation, climate change, air pollution, and ash dieback, has placed globally significant plants and fungi at risk.
One such rare lichen, believed to exist solely in a Somerset wood, exemplifies the critical state of these habitats. Temperate rainforests, situated in areas like western Scotland, north Wales, the Lake District, and southwest England, have significantly diminished due to deforestation and overgrazing.
Conservation charities, including The National Trust and PlantLife, are collaborating to safeguard these biodiversity hotspots. Dartmoor ranger Demelza Hyde emphasizes the importance of this “miniature world of mosses and lichens” in temperate rainforests, with ongoing efforts focused on saving endangered lichens through transplantation to other forest areas and new tree plantings.
The urgency stems from the threat of ash dieback, a fungus that has ravaged European ash trees. Lichens, a peculiar class of organisms found in temperate rainforests, play a crucial role. Comprising fungi in association with other life forms, lichens, numbering over 2,000 species in Britain and Ireland alone, are a key focus of conservation efforts.
Rare species such as the horsehair lichen Bryoria smithii and the comma lichen Arthonia thoriana are now known only in specific UK rainforest sites. April Windle, a Devon naturalist specializing in lichens, emphasizes the importance of giving attention to these small, often overlooked species in conservation efforts. The ongoing project in Devon aims to restore existing woodlands by clearing invasive plants, planting new veteran trees, and transplanting lichens to ensure the survival of these unique ecosystems.
Rescue mission for UK rainforests’ weird treasures – BBC News