The Meetings Held in 2013


Browndown, Gosport, Wednesday, 27th March

A meeting looking at the shingle beech at Browndown, Gosport, where John Norton has been finding lots of interesting lichens. We met at 10.30, at the large car park at western end of Browndown grid reference SZ5689 9965, with a good range of lichens found including one very interesting Lecanora discovered new to Hampshire. Read report.

Keyhaven, New Forest, Hampshire, Saturday 16th of March

An afternoon visit to Keyhaven to look at coastal scrub with the aim of finding Teloschistes chrysophthalmus. We met at the car park at SU306915 at 1.30pm. A successful meeting with the target species found. Read report.

Parkhurst Forest, Isle of Wight, Saturday, 20th April 2013

Parkhurst Forest is the largest pasture woodland relic in the Isle of Wight with a rich ancient woodland lichen assemblage, but it had not been looked at for sometime. Start at the parking at Marks Corner approx. OS grid ref SZ470920. Read report.

Wilverley, New Forest, Evening Meeting, Wednesday, 19th June

As part of the New Forest Heathland Lichen Survey, an evening meeting to start the survey the grid square SU2502. We met in the small northern car park at Wilverley Plain at SU256012 at 6.45pm. Read report.

Studland, Dorset, Wednesday, 26nd June 2013

A general ecological study of the Studland Dunes is being under taken by the National Trust, the Cyril Diver Project (Cyril Diver Project Facebook Site). For this Jenny Seawood and Paul Evans mapping the areas of lichen dominance and the aim of the WLG meeting was to record the lichen diversity of the dunes. Started at 10.30, meeting at the National Trust car park near the ferry at SZ0352 8635. Read Report.

Melchet Court, Naturalist groups/recording weekend, Wiltshire, Sunday, 7th July 2013

The Wessex Lichen Group joined a recording weekend at an old park, with veteran Oaks, which had not been recorded for lichens perviously, we started at the front of the main school building SU2705 2231, at 10.30. Read Report.

Headon Warren on the Isle of Wight, Saturday, 14th September 2013


This was a joint meeting with the new Isle of Wight Lichen Group, which was organised by the Streets, the original founders of the WLG, to look at Headon Warren. This is a lichen rich heathland on the coast, with a landslip below. It is known as the richest Cladonia site on the Island but has not been looked at in detail for sometime. We met at 10.30 at a car park on the road near a footpath to Headon Warren at SZ319864. Read report.

Rufus Stone, New Forest, Saturday, 26th October 2013

Neil Sanderson lead a Wessex Bryology Group meeting at t Rufus Stone on the 26th October, this concentrated on bryophytes but all interested were invited and one very significant lichen find was made. Report in preparation

Warren Shore, North Solent NNR, New Forest, Sunday, 10th November 2013


A meeting to look at a stable shingle beach in the morning and acid grassland with coastal scrub in the afternoon within the North Solent NNR in the Beaulieu Estate. We met at the shore hide car park at SZ4202 9726, at 10.30 on Warren Lane. An interesting meeting, with a potentially exciting find, a member of the Caloplaca cerina group growing on the ground and on under shrub bases in the transition to saltmarsh. Read report.

Frame Wood, New Forest, Monday, 30th December 2013

The New Year meeting at Frame Wood in the New Forest, with the main aim of searching for Lobaria species as part of the BLS Lobarion project. We met at the Rans Wood car park, Furzey Lodge at SU3665 0252, at 10.30. Read report.