The lichen flora of declining coniferous trees in the northern Black Forest: Ecological studies aiming at a differentiated assessment of air pollution effects and epidemic disease

For the forest region of Klosterreichenbach, a map of the state of the lichen flora has been drawn up, based on investigations of lichens on trees in different states of decline and of various age categories, and covering various species of trees, growing in areas showing the typical signs of the novel types of forest damage, and in areas subjected to pollutant emissions of a nearby, heavily polluting emission source. In the close-in area of this emission source, forest decline has been found to be strongly correlated with a heavily depleted lichen flora. Beyond the area affected by the emission source, the degree of decline of the trees has been found to increase with tree hight and age, but the quality and quantity data taken of lichen flora on these trees showed an improving trend, which however is superimposed by climatic and biological factors. The final analysis of the data indicates that the novel types of forest damage can no longer be explained by air pollution alone. (VHE) With many figs. and tabs