Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-7qhmt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-29T07:40:04.857Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Sex in the extremes: lichen-forming fungi

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 June 2005

FABIAN A. SEYMOUR
Affiliation:
School of Biology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK. Tel. +44 (0) 115 9513203 Fax +44 (0) 115 9513251 E-mail: Fabian.Seymour@Nottingham.ac.uk
PETER D. CRITTENDEN
Affiliation:
School of Biology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK. Tel. +44 (0) 115 9513203 Fax +44 (0) 115 9513251 E-mail: Fabian.Seymour@Nottingham.ac.uk
PAUL S. DYER
Affiliation:
School of Biology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK. Tel. +44 (0) 115 9513203 Fax +44 (0) 115 9513251 E-mail: Fabian.Seymour@Nottingham.ac.uk
Get access

Abstract

Lichens are characteristically found in environments subject to extremes of temperature, desiccation and low nutrient status. Despite this sexual structures are often formed in abundance. The underlying mechanisms of sex in lichen-forming fungi are discussed, together with possible ecological reasons for the persistence of sexuality. Special features of lichen sex are highlighted including sex at the limits of life on earth in Antarctica, re-lichenization following sex and dispersal, and the perennial nature of lichen fruiting bodies.

Type
Original Article
Copyright
© 2005 Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)