LÍQUENES DEL ENTORNO DE LA BASE CIENTÍFICA ANTÁRTICA ARTIGAS, BAHÍA COLLINS, ISLA REY JORGE, ANTÁRTIDA. ESTUDIO PRELIMINAR

Abstract

King George Island is in the South
Shetlands archipelago and is one of the
most maritime Antarctic representative
areas. Therefore this area is suitable for
monitoring cryptogams (lichens) and
plant communities as indicators of global
environmental changes. In this study a
lichen patches survey was conducted in
four zones around the Uruguayan Antarctic
Scientific Station (UASS), located at Fíldes
Peninsula, King George Island (62º10´ S/
58º50´ W). In each zone, we determined
the frequency and coverage of each lichen
species. Thirteen species were identified
by morphological characteristics and
chemical constituents. Cladonia gender is
represented by four species, while the rest of
the genera recorded only one species. Usnea
aurantiaco-atra was the most abundant
species and the rarest was Leptogium
puberulum, only present in one of surveyed
zones. This work is the first survey of lichen
communities in this area.