Welcome

Welcome to the website Scottish Lichens!

Scotland has a wealth of habitats and, as a result, it is rich in lichens, mosses and liverworts. Whether we are in a city park, walking through a leafy estate, through pinewoods, climbing a munro, or doing some coastal exploring, we are bound to encounter lichens, mosses and liverworts. As such, Scotland is host to a significant proportion of the more than 2000 or so lichen species and the more than 1000 or so bryophyte species found in the UK. Many of these species are present elsewhere in Britain as well, others are unique to Scotland. On this website I share some of the species that I have found on my journey to learn Scottish lichens and bryophytes.

The sections Lichens and Byrophytes provides access to descriptions and photos for each species listed. The actual descriptions aim to give a few pointers, but together with the photo(s), I hope they help you to quickly assess whether you are thinking along the right lines for an identification or not. To confirm an identification, especially when you are doing lichen recording, you will need to consult the latest edition of Dobson’s Lichens, The Lichens of Great Britain and Ireland, or the latest edition of Atherton et al‘s Mosses and Liverworts of Britain and Ireland.

Recording our finds is important as it may highlight changing distributions of species as a result of, for example, climate change and habitat loss. The presence of protected species may also influence planning applications or lead to certain areas getting a nature protection designation. If you want to, you can submit your records directly to the British Lichen Society or to iNaturalist or iRecord. I am currently verifying Scottish lichen records for Scotland on iRecord on behalf of the British Lichen Society.

Lichens and bryophytes are highly particular when it comes to habitat and substratum and have a unique biology and ecology, and in the Blog section I discuss some of these such issues. 

Under Training and Walks I have listed any upcoming public events and links to self-guided walks I have written. January 2026, I will launch my first distance learning course, Lichens on Trees. In Surveys and Writing I give information to anyone interested in survey work, public engagement and writing projects.

A little bit about my background and my enthusiasm for lichens and bryophytes can be found in the About section.

In the Acknowledgements I list some of the resources I have drawn on for the species descriptions and my wider study of lichen and bryophyte biology and ecology.