Alberta Native Plant Council

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Feature Plant

Winter Lichenland

Flavopunctelia flaventior

A wander in wintery, snowy woods when most plants lie dormant is an opportunity to focus on the beauty and diversity of lichens! Speckled greenshield or green speckleback (Flavopunctelia flaventior) is a "welcome splash of colour" that "will certainly catch your eye on your winter cross-country ski or snowshoe rambles" (Johnson et al. 1995, Vitt et al. 1988).

It's yellow-green colour, and large, circular patches (thalli) with surface soredia (powdery propagules) and pseudocyphellae (white spots) make it "unlikely to be confused with any other tree-dwelling lichen". It grows on the tree trunks and branches of aspen, poplar, birch, willow and conifers, especially spruce. It's ranked S4 (common) by ACIMS and is widespread across the southern Boreal Forest and northern Parkland; in fact the range map in Vitt et al. (1988) includes the entire province. The Genus name comes from the Latin flavens (yellow) and punctum (a point), referring to the yellowish lobes bearing many tiny pores.

Photo and text by Mari Decker

Vitt, D., J. Marsh and R. Bovey. 1988. Mosses, Lichens & Ferns of Northwest North America. Lone Pine Publishing.

Johnson, D., L. Kershaw, A. MacKinnon and J. Pojar. 1995. Plants of the Western Boreal Forest & Aspen Parkland. Lone Pine Publishing.

Volunteer Opportunities

The ANPC is a volunteer run organization and as such we are always in the need of more volunteers. We have both elected and non-elected positions. Nominations are now being requested for the following vacant positions. For more information please contact us at info@anpc.ab.ca.

Elected Positions

President
Secretary
Northern Director
Southern Director

Non-Elected Positions

Rare Plant Committee Members
Conservation Action Committee Members
Reclamation and Horticulture Committee Members
Botany Alberta Coordinating Committee Members
Nisku Prairie Steward

If you wish to volunteer with the ANPC we will do our best to accomodate you. While the positions above are the most needed at the moment, all non-elected committees can use more help if you have an interest in a specific area that is already occupied. Further assistance can also be provided by contributing articles to IRIS and helping out with our occasional field activities such as reclamation or weed control.

Future Volunteer Opportunities

The following represents a complete list of the positions on the ANPC board.

Elected Positions

President
Vice-President
Secretary
Treasurer
Southern Director
Northern Director
Central Director
NA Director

Non-elected Positions

Past - President
Membership Secretary
Rare Plants Committee
Information and Education Committee
Conservation Action Committee
Reclamation and Horticulture
Newsletter
Web Page

Recipient of a 2010 Emerald Award!
The ANPC was recognized for its efforts in promoting knowledge of Alberta's native plants; conserving Alberta's native plant species and their habitats; and preserving plant species and habitat for the enjoyment of present and future generations.