Manitoba has official bird, tree and flower so why not lichen?

If you find fun in fungus,scientists are working on something you'llreallylichen.

Researchers from across Canadawant to identifya different species of lichen for each province, which could then be adopted as a formal symbol for that region.

The idea first took root in 2016 when a group in California successfully designatedthe lace lichen as the state lichen of California.

The following year, ahigh-profile searchfor a national bird in Canada, made Canadian lichenologistseager for a piece of that spotlight, said TroyMcMullin,a research scientist from the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa.

Lichen, afungusin a symbioticunionwith an alga, is often overlooked but is important enough to earn status as a provincial symbol, he said.

"They'redefinitely not on everyone's radar people often ask what a lichen is when I tell them that's what I study," he said.

"But they're really important ecologically. They do all kinds of important things, everything from being food for different organismsparticularly for caribou, that's how they survive in winterto controlling erosion."

They also play a key part in nutrient cycling,providing protective camouflage for certain creatures and nesting material for others, as well as acting as a slow release of water into the environment,McMullinsaid.

And their sensitivity to air pollution and climate makes them ideal for monitoring air quality and climate change.

So,lichenologistsacross the country are banding together to select a lichen representative for each province.

I like to call them the coral reefs of the forest, they come in so many different colours and so many different shapes and sizes.- TroyMcMullin

Manitoba's selection would join a list that already includes the Prairie crocus as theprovincial flower, the white spruce as the provincial tree, and the great grey owl as theprovincial bird.

However, narrowing that selection down to one lichen is no easy task.

There are 2,500 different species in Canada and they come in a vast range of colours and grow in a multitude of patterns.

Boreal regions areparticularly rich with lichensand Manitoba has a large boreal expanse. However, it also has an arctic area, which containsits own different species, saidMcMullin.

Then there is the extreme south part of Manitoba, where a few different species from the United States stretch into the province.

"Lichen is everywhere. It growspretty much in any terrestrial environmentaround the world.They'reon the trees in people's front yards, they're on the sidewalks,"McMullinsaid.

"I like to call them the coral reefs of the forest, they come in so many different colours and so many different shapes and sizes."

McMullinexpects it to take at least another year before any final decisions have been made.

The main goal of the project is to simply increase the awareness of lichen, not necessarily to push for the provinces to officiallyadoptthem as symbols, he said, but noted that would be "amazing."

"They're abundant, they're beautiful, they're important and they're under-appreciated. Hopefully this process will draw attention and raise their profile a little bit."