Officers of the BLS
Dr. Janet Simkin - President |
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Dr. Allan Pentecost - Vice-President |
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Dr. Barbara Hilton - Immediate Past President |
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Chris Ellis - Secretary |
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Chris Ellis studied Ecology at Leeds before completing a PhD in palaeoecology at Manchester. He spent a further two years working on peat-forming systems in High Arctic Canada, and was introduced to lichen research on returning to the UK when he spent 18 months in Peter Crittenden's lab at Nottingham. Chris has been employed at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh since 2003, where he now heads the Cryptogam Section. His personal research interests are in lichen biogeography, including the lichen response to environmental change, and community ecology of epiphytes. He leads an active research team in climate change science, cryptogamic biodiversity and lichen ecology. |
Paul Cannon - Bulletin Editor |
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Dr. Les Knight - Chair of Data Committee |
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Steve Price – Field Meetings Secretary |
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Janet Simkin studied botany at Cambridge but her interest in lichens dates back even further, to a school project on churchyard lichens. She was distracted for a while by a career in software development before returning to academic life to research the ecology of the lichen-rich grasslands contaminated by lead mining. Now a freelance ecologist with a special interest in species-rich grasslands and plant communities, her work involves a fascinating but often confusing mix of research, surveys and teaching. In the BLS she has been involved in the computerisation of lichen records, setting up the database and making our records accessible on the internet.
Allan Pentecost is a biogeochemist with long interest in lichens. He learned much from Francis Rose on forays in Kent and Sussex, and later studied lichen ecology with field work in Wales. His PhD was done at the University College of North Wales. Now living in Cumbria, he is exploring some of the less well known areas and preparing a new lichen checklist for the county. Allan spends most of his time as an Honorary Research Fellow at the Freshwater Biological Association where he is an active algologist. He retains a broad interest in science, has written several books and research articles, is a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society and retains an Emeritus position at King’s College London.
Barbara Hilton's interest in lichens developed because of the great scope they provide for projects among student teachers. Her enthusiasm grew through membership of the BLS and studying coastal lichens. She helped to develop the OPAL air quality survey and maintains interest in churchyard lichens. Expeditions, as to Yunnan (China) and Newfoundland, broadened her knowledge of lichens and their ecology. By training a chemist and biochemist, Barbara drew on her educational background in chairing the Education and Promotions Committee for 10 years. She enjoys photography, is a Fellow of the RSA and received the Ursula Duncan Award in 2008.
Paul Cannon has worked in fungal systematics for over half his life, moving over to the Dark Side after completing a PhD on legume classification. His early education at the Commonwealth Mycological Institute (subsequently IMI) included an appreciation that lichens are fungi too, and should be integrated into the overall fungal taxonomic scheme. Most of his professional life has involved studying leaf parasites, but he turned up at the BLS 50
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Anniversary Meeting at Nettlecombe in 2008 and unwisely volunteered to become Editor of the Bulletin. The lichen “bug” rapidly took hold, and his current interests revolve around fieldwork, lichen imaging and web development. He now works at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Les Knight studied geology at Durham University where he went on to gain a PhD in mineralogy. He spent his professional life as a geologist working in the coal, gas and nuclear waste industries. His interest in lichens started literally by accident when his wife hurt her knee when out looking for mosses which prevented them from going on a trekking holiday. Instead they both attended an introductory course on lichens at the Malham Tarn Field Studies Council centre and became hooked. His main interest is in terrestrial lichens, especially those found in upland regions and those associated with areas of past lead mining.
Steve Price worked as a nature reserves officer for Derbyshire Wildlife Trust. He first developed an interest in lichens to better understand some of the Peak District oak woodlands in his charge. A product of the Frank Dobson school of lichenology, Steve's interest in lichens developed further through contact with other experienced lichenologists in the BLS and soon became a passion. Steve is the lichen recorder for Derbyshire.