During Week 4, Dr. Calabria conducted field work in Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest north of Snoqualmie Pass. Dr. Calabria was successful in relocating Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis from a 2001 observation of the species in the Consortium of North American Lichen Herbaria (CNALH). The region in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest where Dr. Calabria conducted the survey represents a gap in our presence/absence and population genetic surveys across the range of the species in WA state and beyond. Much of our work this summer is devoted to revisiting historic observations to confirm the current status of the species and making tissue collections for population genetic analyses in those gap areas and other areas not surveyed since this project began in spring 2021.

Dr. Calabria and “Old Blue” (Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis) on the Dingford Creek Trail in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest near North Bend, WA. (Photo courtesy of Dr. Calabria)
Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis at Dingford Creek in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest near North Bend, WA. (Photo by Dr. Calabria)