Epiphytic macrolichen communities take decades to recover after high‐severity wildfire in chaparral shrublands

Evaluating land-cover change and land subsidence in coal fire zones: Insights from multi-source monitoring

Coal fires are a significant environmental and geological threat, causing extensive ecological damage and loss of resources. Existing monitoring methods, though effective, have limitations in terms of precision and adaptability. This study integrates multiple monitoring techniques, including remote sensing, thermal infrared imaging, UAV based surveys, and field investigations, to assess the environmental and geological consequences of coal fires. The results indicate that: 1) Vegetation cover in the affected regions decreased from 0.43 to 0.38 between 2017 and 2024, with Fire Zone 1 showing minimal recovery and Fire Zone 3 exhibiting moderate improvement, though the overall low vegetation area expanded due to ongoing fires; 2) The Remote Sensing Ecological Index (RSEI) declined from 0.41 to 0.38, with poor-rated areas increasing significantly, particularly in Fire Zone 3, reflecting the ongoing degradation of ecological conditions caused by both fire activity and climate factors; 3) The Flat Spectral Shape Index (FSSI) showed stability, but fluctuations in the areas with moderate and high probability of exposed coal, especially in Fire Zone 3, pointed to the expanding fire footprint and worsening ecological degradation; 4) Surface subsidence varied considerably, with Fire Zone 3 experiencing the most severe subsidence, indicating unstable geological conditions exacerbated by fire activity. The study underscores the importance of continuous monitoring and effective disaster risk management strategies. Despite localized improvements in soil potassium levels, coal fires have caused significant declines in soil nutrients and moisture content. This research contributes to the development of more effective strategies for managing coal fire impacts and supporting ecological restoration efforts in affected regions.

The reference genome assembly of the bright cobblestone lichen, Acarospora socialis

Acarospora socialis, the bright cobblestone lichen, is commonly found in southwestern North America. This charismatic yellow lichen is a species of key ecological significance as it is often a pioneer species in new environments. Despite their ecological importance virtually no research has been conducted on the genomics of A. socialis. To address this, we used long-read sequencing to generate the first high-quality draft genome of A. socialis. Lichen thallus tissue was collected from Pinkham Canyon in Joshua Tree National Park, California and deposited in the UC Riverside herbarium under accession #295874. The de novo assembly of the mycobiont partner of the lichen was generated from Pacific Biosciences HiFi long reads and Dovetail Omni-C chromatin capture data. After removing algal and bacterial contigs, the fungal genome was approximately 31.2 Mb consisting of 38 scaffolds with contig and scaffold N50 of 2.4 Mb. The BUSCO completeness score of the assembled genome was 97.5% using the Ascomycota gene set. Information on the genome of A. socialis is important for California conservation purposes given that this lichen is threatened in some places locally by wildfires due to climate change. This reference genome will be used for understanding the genetic diversity, population genomics, and comparative genomics of A. socialis species. Genomic resources for this species will support population and landscape genomics investigations, exploring the use of A. socialis as a bioindicator species for climate change, and in studies of adaptation by comparing populations that occur across aridity gradients in California.