Temporal trends of element concentrations and ecophysiological parameters in the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea transpanted in and around an industrial area of S Italy

This study investigated the temporal trends of element concentrations and ecophysiological parameters(integrity of cell membranes, membrane lipid peroxidation, and sample vitality) in thalli of the lichenPseudevernia furfuracea transplanted in and around an industrial area of S Italy from May 2010 to May 2011,once every 3 months. Element accumulation at levels indicating that the atmosphere of the study area waspolluted by most elements occurred only during the third trimester of exposure, and the ecophysiologicalparameter best reflecting this trend was sample vitality expressed in terms of activity of the enzyme dehydrogenase.Among the available climatological parameters, the different amount of rainfall during the exposureperiod may influence the results, especially the number of hours with rainfall >16 mm/day, which is the thresholdbetween light–moderate and moderate–heavy rainfall in the Mediterranean area.