Patterns of lichen diversity in coastal sand-dunes of northern Portugal

Résumé

Coastal sand-dunes of northern Portugal are dynamic ecosystems under natural and human disturbances. Still, they constitute an interesting subject for ecological research, since they spread over a main biogeographic transition between the Eurosiberian and the Mediterranean regions. Despite the awareness of lichen contribution to grey dune stability and protection, there are no recent published studies focusing on their lichen flora. Therefore, the overarching goal of this research was to evaluate the patterns of lichen diversity along biogeographic - and coastal dynamics - related gradients in northern Portugal. A catalogue with 17 species is presented, and includes a new species for Portugal, Cladonia rei Schaer. Patterns of lichen diversity were analysed through Mann-Whitney tests and Analysis of Similarity (ANOSIM), which showed distinct signals when considering different diversity components and scales of analysis. These results have strong implications for conservation and monitoring strategies of this type of ecosystem.