Lichens of North America

by Irwin M. Brodo, Sylvia Duran Sharnoff, Stephen Sharnoff

Lichens are a unique form of plant life, the product of a symbiotic association between an alga and a fungus. The beauty and importance of lichens have long been overlooked, despite their abundance and diversity in most parts of North America and elsewhere in the world. This stunning book—the first accessible and authoritative guidebook to lichens of the North American continent—fills the gap, presenting superb color photographs, descriptions, distribution maps, and keys for identifying the most common, conspicuous, or ecologically significant species.
The book focuses on 805 foliose, fruticose, and crustose lichens (the latter rarely included in popular guidebooks) and presents information on another 700 species in the keys or notes; special attention is given to species endemic to North America. A comprehensive introduction discusses the biology, structure, uses, and ecological significance of lichens and is illustrated with 90 additional color photos and many line drawings. English names are provided for most species, and the book also includes a glossary that explains technical terms. This visually rich and informative book will open the eyes of nature lovers everywhere to the fascinating world of lichens.

Genres: Nature, Science, Biology, Reference, Nonfiction, Natural History

795 pages, Hardcover

First published September 10, 2001

About the author

Considered a world authority on lichens and their biology, Irwin M. Brodo is emeritus research scientist at the Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa, Ontario.

Reviews

[Bin · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're into lichenology, this is The Book.

And that's that.

[Bramble · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best lichen porno ever.

[Mgb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot say I read this whole book. Many sections are beyond me as a casual reader. But the sections I read and understood are fascinating! Lichen are unlike anything I learned about in my high school biology class. The chapter on human uses of lichen would make a fun book for the general science reader. Who wouldn’t want to know about topics such as the delicacy ‘stomach ice cream’, lichenometry, and the possibility of manna from heaven being a lichen? This book blew my mind.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

The introduction was really helpful but I wanted more comments about the lichens themselves in the field guide section, not just the ID info

[Max · Rating 5 out of 5]

🙀

[Snow Simp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best lichen book and pretty lichens

[Willow Hamilton]

A really good dictionary for lichens; read this for fun because I love environmental sciences. Taught me a great deal about the scientific aspects of lichens and their various species.

[Violet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this might be a textbook... or a lichen encyclopedia... (it reads like the latter). It's definitely not for the casually curious. I think it weighs about 10 lbs and is the size of a large coffee table book. I did enjoy it, however. It has gorgeous photographs and covers all varieties of lichen. It uses very scientific language throughout, but can be muscled through. Highly recommended for lichen enthusiasts.

[Steve Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I aspire to one day know a tiny fraction of the information packed into this tome on North American Lichens. Brodo, Sharnoff and Sharnoff have produced one of my favorite natural history guides - a superb treatment of what could be conceived as a difficult group. Over 800 pages, covering over 800 species, with over 900 photos.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only criticism is that it couldn't make up it's mind whether it was a field guide or a coffee-table book, and ended up being neither. That said, it's still way better than anything else available and a great introduction to the study of lichens in North America.

[Terri Klemetson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nature is art. Great reference books for those who adore lichens.

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's not as great of a guidebook as I expected, but it has nice pictures and explanations, and it's the only one like it I've seen.

[Brian Carusella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Without a doubt, the most thorough book on North American lichens. Highly recommended if you're at all in to that sort of thing.

[Tofu Fairy · Rating 1 out of 5]

text book...bleh...did not even look all the way thru it...