Dorothy Smullen

North Plainfield High School

Wilson Avenue

North Plainfield, NJ 07060

School Telephone: (908) 769-6000

Home Telephone: (908) 647-5740

Title Page Page 1

Table of Contents Page 2

Origin of Project / Unit Idea Page 3

Abstract Page 4

Project Directions / Unit Plan Page 5 to Page 14

Project Description

Background

Grade / Course / Student Population

Interdisciplinary Connections /

Instructional & Assessment

Methodology

Student Performance Standards

Learning Activities

Materials / Resources / Safety

About the Author

Publicity Information. Page 15 to Page 16

Student Copy of Module

and Answer Sheet Page 1 to Page 7

Upon receiving our notebooks for MSRI 1999 I was very excited to see that we would be going on a woodland walk to collect fungi specimens and lichens (along with mud for a Wingradsky Column-whatever that was?).

I knew we would probably be studying bacteria, mold fungi and possibly protists but this was a chance to explore long-overlooked lichens. Yes, they have a macroscopic thallus, but one needs to use the microscope to view their component parts.

Some species are extremely common but hardly noticed in our surroundings. This was a chance for me to explore their world with applications to all sciences. In addition, wonderful websites about lichens were already copied in our notebooks. Later in the summer, I was going to go to Norway and Maine and get a chance to look at many different species of lichens in the coniferous forest biome.

Lichens and Dorothy’s Module......Perfect Together!

Project Description: This project was designed to introduce the subject of lichens to students; to give students more of an appreciation of lichens and to have students discover the components of lichens and realize their connections to the environment and microbiology.

Environmental Science - unit on succession;

Biology - unit on Fungi

MS/9th/10th

2-3 periods/ heterogeneous

Use of Demonstration/ Hands-on

Discovery/ Cooperative Learning

Assessment: graded answer sheet

and drawing

NJ Core Curriculum

5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.6, 5.7, 5.12

Motivation and Cultural connections

What are lichens?-use of microscopes

Env. Sci connections -pollution

Lichen Groups - classifying

Materials: lichen use samples,

microscopes and lenses

single edge razor blades

display specimens

foliose lichens to examine

field guides and articles

Lichen Tidbits

References

Websites

G.B. Map

Dye Bath Directions

Mud column Directions

About the Author: BA and MA from Brooklyn College; Major in Biology; Teaching for 16 years; Subjects taught - Env. Sci., Biology, Life Science, Physical Sci., Earth Sci.

Dorothy Smullen developed this module over several months in 1999 as a participant in the NJ BISEC Microbiology Summer Residential Institute.

This project was designed to introduce the subject of lichens to students; to give students more of an appreciation of lichens other than one picture in the textbook; and to have students discover the components of lichens and realize their connections to the environment and microbiology.

B. Background:

Students taking 9th grade Environmental Science have a unit on Succession in which this module could be used. Students taking Biology in 9th or 10th grade or middle school Life Science could include this module in their overview of biodiversity - Kingdom Fungi.

Students will gain an understanding of an organism with interacting components; conduct observations; begin connections to other science units; and observe how cultures and organisms have benefited from lichens.

Middle School, 9^th or 10^th grade. Module was designed for Env. Sci. at 9th grade level - heterogeneous grouping for 2-3 class periods. Module may be adapted to Life Sci. or Biology. Parts of the module can be generated by discussion with the entire class, at the individual level or in small groups.

• Geography and culture of Great Britain
• Use of Demonstration/Hands-on Discovery and Analysis/Cooperative Learning Assessment - Students complete an answer sheet that is graded and a drawing page which will show communication skills of their observations. Part of the above answer sheet may be completed for homework or done in cooperative groups.

E. Student Performance Standards:

NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards - 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.6, 5.7, 5.12

Teacher should assemble some of the items on the chart and creatively display them on the lab desk.. Ask the question "What do all of these items have in common?" Entertain some answers and then hand out the student packet of the module. Discuss the objects using some of the information below:

Purple yarn or fabric: lichens have been used for centuries for purple dye - you might discuss "royal purple" which was also produced by the Medit. snail Murex. Check the teacher resource section for a purple dye preparation activity.

Reindeer toy or picture: a large component of food for reindeer in the tundra biome is actually a lichen called reindeer "moss".

(Chance to bring out the problem of common names.)

Perfume or fragrant soap: some lichens (Evernia) produce a binder compound for perfumes. It is oily with a "mossy" odor.

Litmus: dyes from certain lichens are used as acid/base indicators

Model train or tracks: certain lichens are painted green and used as shrubs or trees in model train layouts.

Piece of Harris Tweed or look-alike: some hand-woven wool fabrics from a Scottish island are dyed with brown lichen dyes.

Antibiotic creams: Usnic acid from certain lichens is used in some hand creams.

Students should fill in their charts and Part I of the answer sheet.

• Students can read outloud or silently the information on lichen components.
• At this time the teacher can emphasize the "new" classification using domains. (An extension activity - "Stuck in the Mud Microbes" may be used to show colorful evidence of different soil bacteria. It is located in the resource section.). You might check to see if students can define desiccation.
• At this time students should answer Part II questions on Fig. A on their answer sheet.

• This section deals with grouping or classifying lichens. If you do not have your own sources of display specimens, several biological supply companies have specimens for purchase.

• Lichen identification guide books would be useful here (If you are teaching an honors section, you might bring in more structural vocabulary than the four major group terms). Note: Lichen color is a difficult characteristic. What you might call gray-green may actually be yellow-green in lichen comparisons. Magazine articles containing color photographs can be on display (See National Geographic, Feb. 1997, p. 58).

• Students should examine display material and read information A -- E. They may fill in Part IV of the answer sheet for homework or in teams.
• Answers:

B. fruticose or squamulose depending on author

C. crustose

D. fruticose

E. foliose

lichen use samples such as litmus vials, purple cloth

compound microscopes and lenses

single-edge razor blades HANDLE WITH CARE

display specimens and foliose lichens for examination

Great Britain map

field guides and articles on lichens

Resources Included:

Lichen Tidbits

References

Websites

Great Britain Economic Map

Directions for Purple Dye Bath -"Passion for Purple"

"Stuck in the Mud Microbes"

• Peltigera aphthusa is a lichen with 2 photobionts - a green algae and a cyanobacterium.
• A few lichen thalli in the arctic region are dated to be about 4,500 years old.
• Many rock inhabiting lichens grow as slowly as 1 mm per year.
• Five species of lichen are known to survive in such extreme temperatures as -198 C.
• In 98% of lichens the fungus partner is an ascomycete.
• The algal partner contributes only about 5 % to the dry weight of a lichen thallus.
• Vernon Ahmadjian was one of the first scientists to tease apart lichen components and have them recombine in culture in the 1970’s.
• Warm brown colors in rugs of the Ramah Navajo are dyed with lichens.
• Northern flying squirrels build nests of certain lichens.
• Lichens in the U.S. Southwest form stable crusts that protect desert soils from erosion (unless crushed by off-road vehicles).
• Lichens that contain cyanobacteria are capable of nitrogen-fixing.
• Witch’s hair, a fruticose lichen found in Washington State, only becomes abundant after trees are about 100 years old. The lichen blows off the trees and provides survival food for the black-tailed deer.
• Many hummingbirds decorate the outside of their nests with lichens.
• Beatrix Potter, the author of Peter Rabbit, presented a theory in the 1890’s that lichens were formed of fungi and algae. Later research proved this theory correct.

Casselman, K.L., Craft of the Dyer - Dover Publications, NY. 1993

Corbridge, J. & Weber, W., A Rocky Mountain Lichen Primer

Dobson, Frank, Lichens: An Illustrated Guide - Richard Pub. Co. LTD.

Hale, Mason, How to Know the Lichens - McGraw-Hill. 1979

Kaufman, P., Plants, Their Biology and Importance - Harper and Row, N.Y. 1989

Margulis, L., and Schwartz. Five Kingdoms - Freeman and Co. 1998.

Philips, Roger, Grasses, Ferns, Mosses and Lichens of G. B. - Pan Books. 1980

Reader’s Digest, North American Wildlife. Pleasantville, N.Y. 1982.

Sharnoff, S., Lichens - More than Meets the Eye - National Geographic

191:2. Feb. 1997. p.58-71.

Lichenland

http://mgd.nasce.org.hyperSql/lichenland/html/biology/meeting.html

Microbial World - Lichens

http://helios.bto.ed.ac.uk./bto/microbes/lichen.html

Peltigera Info

http://www.rook.org/earl/bwca/nature/moss/peltigera.html

Lichen ID in NH

http://www.cciw.ca/eman-temp/research/protocols/lichen/part13.html

British Parmelia sp.

http://www.argonet.co.uk.users/jmgray.cd.key/htm

Lichen Biomonitoring

http://www.hcs.ohio-state.edu/odnr/health/lichen/lichenstudy/htm

Intro to Lichens

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fungi/lichens/lichenfr.html

Cetraria Protection

http://www.traffic.org/plants/species-4.html

Bidirectional Reflectance of Lichens-Satellite Images

http:www.itek.norut.no/itek/sat/projects.brf.html

Directions for Purple Dye Bath from Lichens

If you have access to umbilicate lichens (common on rocks in New England states), you might collect a few (no more than 10% of the population and mostly from loose specimens on the ground) and try this dye preparation technique. Crumble the dry specimens and place (1/3 fill) in wide mouth jar with tight fitting lid. Fill jar to 1/4 with non-sudsing household ammonia. Shake the contents to wet pieces. In a few days (2-3) add warm water near to the top - about 3X as much water as ammonia. Seal tightly and place in an obvious location so that you remember to shake it everyday for one to two months. Watch the purple dye color develop over time. The longer you wait, the deeper the color.

Consult craft books for natural dying techniques of wool or silk if you wish to use your dye bath.

Experiment with adding acid to a sample of your dye bath to see what color changes occur.

For the history of purple dye from lichens...Orchil...read the following website---

Goal: To see evidence of different bacteria without use of the microscope

Materials: wetland mud (salt marsh or stream bank)

a one L plastic soda bottle (top cut off)

1 teasp. CaSO

1 teasp. CaCO

1/2 page shredded newspaper

distilled water

Procedure: Remove any rocks and sticks from mud slurry (moisten with distilled water or stream water if necessary).

1. Add mixed newspaper shreds, CaSO and CaCO to bottom of tube
2. Cover with a little wet mud and tap down to remove all the air
3. Continue to add mud til 3/4 of tube is filled
4. Tap down to remove air
5. Let material settle
6. If liquid up to 2 cm is not covering the mud then add some distilled water to bring the liquid to 2 cm above the mud
7. Place near light source to get side light but not heat
8. Seal top with plastic wrap and stong rubber band
9. Do not let column dry out
10. Develop for a month or more and note colors of colonies

Observations:

1. Check column for development and growth of colored colonies
2. Note time of development
3. Check diagram for type of bacteria.

References: Eveleigh, D. and Davis, D. Whimsical Wrinkles with

Winogradsky’s Wonder. SGM Quarterly. Nov. 1996. 106-7.

Schipper, A. and Schipper, L. Mud Microbiology.

The Science Teacher. 66 #5. May 1999 p. 26-28.

Dorothy Smullen has a BA and MA from Brooklyn College with a major in Biology. She has been teaching for 16 years in NJ. Before that she was director of the Reeves-Reed Arboretum in Summit for 5 years.

She received a National Science Foundation Fellowship in 1968 for a summer seminar in Tropical Botany. In 1987 she received the Eximia Award for contributions to amateur mycology from the Northeast Mycological Foray.

Dorothy has been a presenter for the NJ Science Teachers Convention in 1991, 1992 and 1999. In 1992, she attended NJ BISEC Residential Summer Institute (RSI) for Middle School Teachers. She also was accepted to the year long 1993-1994 NJ BISEC Clinical Institute at Morristown Memorial Hospital.

Memberships include the New Jersey Mycological Association (25 years), New Jersey Audubon, Nature Conservancy and the Long Hill First Aid Squad.

Likable Lichens

Part I LICHEN USES -- Observe from Teacher’s Demonstration

Listen to your teacher and fill in the above chart. Then answer the questions in part I of the answer page.

Lichens have long been known as pioneer species because of their role in primary succession and soil formation on bare rock. The reason that they can colonize this surface is that each lichen is actually a partnership of two kinds of organisms. Close associations in biology are called symbiotic relationships (symbiosis). If both organisms benefit the arrangement is called mutualism. If one of the organisms is harmed it is called parasitism. Most resources consider a lichen as mutualistic but some consider it to be controlled parasitism.

The lichen is composed of a structure called a thallus which includes:

a fungus: -- called the mycobiont

and an alga: the photobiont -- may be a green alga or a blue-green

alga now called a cyanobacterium

1. The photobiont (alga) provides carbohydrates through photosynthesis, proteins and vitamins for itself and the fungus.
2. The mycobiont (fungus) provides protection, support, water storage and minerals (absorbed from substrate). Water storage can prevent desiccation.

Most bacteria, algae and fungi are considered microbes because their study depends on the use of the microscope. Microbiologists recognize a classification system that divides living things into three domains rather than five kingdoms. (See figure A.) Answer the questions in Part II on your answer sheet.

Follow instructions from your teacher in using the microscope. You will need the following: Scalpel or single edge razor blade

10x hand lens or dissecting scope

glass slides and cover slips

dropping bottle of 3% KOH

lichen specimen

Aside from being pioneer species, lichens are useful indicators of air pollution. They can indicate contamination of the air similar to the "canary in the coal mine". Most lichens will not grow in polluted air.

Note the key to the different zones and abundance of lichen species.

Lichen thalli are broadly classified by their general appearance into four major groups:

1. Crustose: wrinkled or cracked, thin crusts so closely attached to the substrate that you must take some of the rock or bark in order to collect the lichen.

2. Foliose: having leafy or flat lobes that are less firmly attached to the sustrate than the crustose type.

3. Fruticose: with upright or hanging, stalked, shrubby or hair-like thalli.

4. Squamulose: the thallus is made up of small scales.

Observe some actual specimens of lichens provided by the teacher. Try to identify what major group they belong to.

Lichens are further classified according to their dry color, macroscopic features, habitat, macrochemical tests and fluorescence. Consult How to Know the Lichens by Mason Hale (1979) for identification. Can you find any lichens in your neighborhood?

Look at the diagrams below and answer the questions in Part IV of your answer sheet. (Diagram source: Reader’s Digest North American Wildlife 1982)

ANSWER SHEET Name ______________________________

1) Which objects involve the use of lichens as pigments? _________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

2) Which object relates to lichens as sources of food in the tundra? _________________

____________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

Figure A: Three Domains of Living Organisms proposed by Woese (Kaufman,1989)

1) In what domain would the mycobiont be found? _____________________________

2) In what domain would a green alga be found? _______________________________

3) In what domain would a cyanobacterium be found? ___________________________

Describe the cut surface of the foliose lichen thallus _____________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

Can you match the quantities of mean SO₂ concentration (ug/m₃ ) in winter to the zones of lichen abundancy? Zones are on the map in part III.

2.zones 3-4 _________ b) under 30

3. zone 5 _________ c) 65-75

4. zones 6-7 _________ d) 35-45

5. zone 8 _________ e) 50-60

6. zone 9-10 _________ f) 80-140

Look on another map of Great Britain and answer the questions below.

What towns or cities occupy zones 0 to 2? _____________________________________

What might be the cause of air pollution in these cities? ________________________

What kind of economic activity is found in the most unpolluted zone? _____________

Look at the drawings in part IV. Read the descriptions given and name the group each lichen represents. (crustose; foliose; fruticose or squamulose)

A. _________________________

B. _________________________

C. _________________________

D. _________________________

E. _________________________