Landmark Lichenological Event

Until the project began in 2019, these specimens remained uncatalogued on separate shelves. After five years of dedicated work, they have all been cataloged in the Emu database. Significant effort was expended throughout the project by Volunteer Robert Salm (much of it at home during the pandemic), and by Volunteers Jenny Earlandson, Noah Hedgman, and Bryan Peters, while Mycology Collections Assistant Wyatt Gaswick played a key role in supporting the EMu imports. Labels and specimens were photographed by interns supported by the National Science Foundation GLOBAL TCN grant (“Building a Global Consortium of Bryophytes and Lichens: Keystones of Cryptobiotic Communities”), led by Collections Manager of Mycology and Lichenology Todd Widhelm and Matt von Konrat (Head of Botanical Collections). In July, Intern Kenneth Koster, relocated all the specimens to the main Field Museum lichen herbarium. Thorsten was reportedly thrilled to see his earliest collections (with collection numbers in the single digits) now on the shelves.
August 23. 2024