PEET: Monographic Studies in the Cladoniaceae (Lichen-Forming Ascomycetes)

9712484 DePriest地衣是与光合藻或蓝藻形成共生关系的真菌，在地理上分布广泛，具有重要的生态意义，但尽管它们代表了已知真菌物种多样性的五分之一或更多，但在分类学和系统发育方面研究不足。对于物种丰富且非常显眼的地衣，如克拉迪纳和克拉多尼亚，这一点在微观上是真实的，它们覆盖着广袤的北部森林和北极冻土带，以及裸露的岩石海岸和热带沙滩上的孤立斑块。这些地衣是它们生态系统的重要组成部分，特别是在北纬地区，它们为驯鹿和驯鹿提供食物。地衣科枝科内的不同类群一直是国家或地区分类处理的主题，但该科在世界范围内仍未综合。由于缺乏强有力的分类学框架，限制了将枝状藻类进一步用作研究化学演化(“地衣物质”)、形态发生和人工地衣形成的模式系统。由Smithsonian Institution的Paula DePriest博士和她的同事波士顿大学的Samuel Hammer教授以及杜克大学、美国其他地方和芬兰的同事共同研究这些分类和系统发育问题的地衣专家团队正在研究这些地衣。Smithsonian Institution是世界上主要的地衣收藏地点之一。该团队将专注于枝科科约11个属和约500个物种，利用自然历史博物馆的现有藏品，并用新的实地收藏来补充这些藏品。这项研究的一个主要重点是获得一组新的特征，用于分类鉴定和系统发育比较，包括分子DNA序列数据和菌丝生长的形态特征，即所谓的Podetia。综合各种证据以改进分类和系统发育推论，构成了地衣系统学现代化的先驱模式。该小组活动的产品将包括传统出版物以及基于网络的产出。

9712484 DePriest Lichens, the fungi that form symbiotic associations with photosynthetic algae or cyanobacteria, are geographically widespread in occurrence, ecologically important, but understudied taxonomically and phylogenetically despite their representing one-fifth or more of known fungal species diversity. This is true in microcosm for the species-rich and highly conspicuous lichens such as Cladina and Cladonia, which carpet wide expanses of northern forests and arctic tundra as well as isolated patches on exposed rocky coasts and tropical sand beaches. These lichens are critical components of their ecosystems, especially in northern latitudes where they provide food for reindeer and caribou. Various groups within the lichen family Cladoniaceae have been the subject of national or regional taxonomic treatments, but the family remains unsynthesized on a worldwide basis. The absence of a robust taxonomic framework limits the further use of Cladonia as a model system for the study of chemical evolution (in "lichen substances"), morphogenesis, and artificial lichenization. These taxonomic and phylogenetic matters are being addressed by a team of lichenologists headed by Dr. Paula DePriest at the Smithsonian Institution, site of one of the world's major collections of lichens, with her colleague Prof. Samuel Hammer of Boston University, along with colleagues at Duke University and elsewhere in the U.S. and in Finland, home to a strong tradition of lichen research. The team will focus on the c. 11 genera and estimated 500 species in the family Cladoniaceae, using existing collections in natural history museums and augmenting these with new field collections. A major emphasis in the research is the acquisition of new sets of characters for taxonomic discrimination and phylogenetic comparison, including molecular DNA sequence data and morphological features of hyphal growth of the fungus, the so-called podetia. The integration of these various kinds of evidence to improve classification and phylogenetic inference constitutes a pioneering model for the modernization of lichen systematics. Products of the team's activities will include traditional publications as well as Web-based outputs.