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Pyxine cocoes
Nyl. - A Foliose Lichen as a Potential
Bioindicator/Biomonitor of Air Pollution in Philippines: An Update
By: Isidro T. Savillo*
In
the 1990s, literatures identifying pollution tolerant lichens have started to
proliferate. In Europe, a lichen known as Lecanora conizaeoides hit the
limelight by being recognized as a pollution tolerant lichen against sulfur
dioxide, one of the most notorious atmospheric pollutants.
However in Asia, there was no specific pollution tolerant lichen that can be
used to gauge the environment’s air pollution index. Therefore, in the present
study, growth of lichens common in an urban area in the Philippines, were
examined. A foliose lichen known as Pyxine cocoes (Swartz) Nyl. (Physciaceae)
was identified to be the most abundant common species in the busy district parks
of the Iloilo city including a church yard. This species is recommended as a
possible bioindicator for atmospheric pollution. Six years after this report, W.
Gruezo a lichenologist from the University of the Philippines Los Banos and his
team reported the ubiquitousness and abundance of P. cocoes. Their
study area spanned four Metro Manila sites and two sites near and around coal
fired power plants where they concluded that the lichen P. cocoes
as being abundant and ubiquitous in all their six study sites. Hence they
considered it as potential biomonitor for atmospheric pollution after analyzing
the samples for several air pollution related elements using x-ray fluorescence
spectrometry. This finding has supported the first pioneering report of the
present author in 2003 in the Philippines regarding the common abundance of this
lichen and its usefulness in determining atmospheric pollution.
*Professor of Lichenology, P.O. Box 203, Iloilo City, Philippines 5000
E-mail:
lichens_2001@yahoo.com | 
