The Discovery of 10 Lichen Species That Changed the World of Science in Antarctica from a Turkish Scientist
Plants that emerge from the coexistence of a fungus and algae are called lichens. In the land region of the South Pole, there has been an interesting development in the name of science.
Taking part in various tasks in order to contribute to science for Erciyes University (ERU), Prof. Dr. The lichens that Gökhan Halıcı discovered on Antarctica excited the scientific world. prof. Dr. Halıcı has been working here for 6 years.
Lichen Samples are Classified with the Support of TUBITAK
Erciyes University (ERÜ) Faculty of Science, Biology Department Lecturer Prof. Dr. Gökhan Halıcı‘s team was formed by Istanbul Technical University Polar Research Application and Research Center (PolReC).
It was learned that Halıcı obtained 800 samples from 200 different species and continued his studies on lichens with these samples wherever he was. In the related news by Ergün Haktanıyan, it was stated that the temperature in the poles has increased by about 3 degrees Celsius in the last 50 years.
Lichens are one of the most dominant organisms of the terrestrial vegetation in Antarctica, Halıcı said. Turkish scientists here analyze about 500 lichens.
Lichen specimens are identified in terms of species by DNA barcoding. The lichens that Halıcı has identified have not been described anywhere in the world before. It is known that scientists have been interested in lichens in Antarctica for 100 years.
Halıcı stated that in the last study, two new lichen species were identified: Rhizocaron ozsoyae and Candelariella ruzgarii. The first name is UBITAK MAM Polar Research Institute Director Prof. Dr. It was used in honor of Burcu Özsoy’s name. The second name is Prof. Dr. It was chosen in honor of Gökhan Halıcı’s eldest son.
Source: AA
