[Lichenes]
(lichens)

Lichens fade quite quickly, especially if exposed to light. Keeping in the dark helps but there’s no long-term method of making them retain their colours for more than a few weeks.

Ascopores are required for accurate identifcation of many lichen species. However, lichen apothecia are long-lived structures which often contain no ripe ascospores. The most productive time is after they’ve been moist for a long period.

It is important to air-dry lichens as soon as possible after collection. Even a couple of days in a damp container is enough for the fungal component to start growing out and spoil the specimen.