Microhabitats and chemical microenvironments under saxicolous lichens growing on granite

Lasallia hispanica, Parmelia omphalodes, and Cornicularia normoerica, saxicolous thalli growing on granite, show a close relationship with other lichens and microorganisms living in the lithic substrate beneath them. The lithobiontic community is an accumulation of microorganisms at an interface forming a biofilm, which interacts with the lithic substrate both geophysically and geochemically. Because of their fruticose and foliose morphology, the saxicolous species examined here are mainly involved in geophysical processes, but in the proximity of their attachment structures, geochemical processes may also be observed. On the other hand, fungi, algae and cyanobacteria forming crustose lichens, as well as free-living lithobiontic microorganisms, are known to show combined geophysical and geochemical action, mainly on laminar minerals. The substrate zone where the saxicolous lichens are attached is most affected by weathering reactions and shows the highest co-occurrence of lithobiontic microorganisms. The physical and chemical properties of the substrate, along with lichen and microorganism activity, determine different microenvironments and microhabitats. The ecological functioning of these lithobiontic communities is not yet fully understood, and research efforts similar to the present are needed to confirm that their development is influenced by interrelations between different community members and the substrate, as suggested here.