Back in the 1990s I did quite a lot of work on calicoids, particularly in the temperate Pacific Northwest.  That work tapered off for a while due to jobs with other focus plus young kids.  Well the kids are getting more independent, so I’m reviving my work.  I hope to focus more on conservation than taxonomy, but strong taxonomic understanding is still a foundation for good conservation decisions.

The calicioid flora of western North America is still poorly understood.  Many species here have either not yet been reported for the region, or even for North America.  Some remain unknown to science entirely.  To get a foothold on understanding our flora, species worldwide must be considered.  Therefore, my checklist and keys attempt to cover all species named in contemporary literature.

I’m sure there are still names attached to specimens a hundred years old or more, which are not covered.  I’ll leave the extreme sleuthing to people with a primary focus (and job) on taxonomy.  But this should be sufficient for building knowledge of which species are here, how frequently, and in which habitats.

• Checklist (v. 2012-03-13)

• Key (v. 2012-03-11)

A long time ago, and well before I created Crustose.Net, I started the Lichen Key Archive.  I still think it was a neat idea, and there was a bit of interest.  But there were a couple technical difficulties of the time that made it difficult to maintain.  While the base pages still exist at the link above, nothing has been added for years and the links to the keys themselves appear broken.

This section of Crustose.Net is available for reviving the idea.  Post keys if you like.  Comments on posted keys are welcome.