Butchers Wood and Lag Wood are designated ancient woodland by Nature England. The locations of ancient woodland can by explored with Nature England's Ancient Woodland map. These two woods have many vascular plant indicators of ancient woodland. You can find out about this ancient woodland plants in my Sim's Nature Notes post The ancient woodland of the Low Weald and Downs. Looking at plants. How do I know I am walking in ancient woodland? Butcher’s Wood, Lag Wood and Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill) 07.04.25
Butchers Wood and Lag Wood are located south of Hassocks, and can be reached by walking down the footpath from Hassocks Station or catching a Metrobus to the Jack and Jill bus stop and walking up the path toward Hassocks. Butcher's Wood is a public access Woodland Trust Wood. Lag Wood is a private wood, but the owner allows the public to use the footpaths through the wood. I led a public introduction to lichens walk at Lag Wood for the Lost Woods of the Low Weald and South Downs; the handout for this walk can be accessed here: Generic Handout for Lag Wood - Sim Elliott 28.02.25.docx
Please note; these are not lichens that are unique to ancient woodland; they are all common lichens in many woods in Sussex. However, it takes an amount of time of tree growth before lichens will start colonialising. e.g. on Oak. 1-5 years; script lichens; 5-10 years Lecanora lichens; 10-25 years; Usnea lichens (less common in Sussex); 40 years+ , Parmelia lichens (e.g. Common Greenshield Lichen). Diagram from Forestry Commission Handbook 4 Lichens in southern woodlands By K. Broad Forest Officer, Forestry Commission, 1989
On Pedunculate Oaks:
This is not a great photo of Pyrrhospora quernea at Butchers Wood; here is a better photo from Warhurst Park
Pertusaria pertusa, Pepper Pot Lichen
With its characteristic pepper pot "warts"
Pertusaria leioplaca
Pertusaria leioplaca is a very common lichen on young smooth-barked coppiced trees, like Hazel and Hornbeam. It often grows with with Graphidaceae family lichens i.e. "script", "writing" lichens, like Graphis scripta s.l. This is not a great photo of Pertusaria leioplaca at Butchers Wood; here is a better photo from Snape Wood, Wadhurst
Pertusaria hymenea
"Wart" lichens (Pertusaria spp. and Lepra spp.) are identified by their wart shape. The best way to identify the difference is to use the keys in Dobson Lichens: An Illustrated Guide to the British and Irish Species. 7th edition.
Only use chemical tests if you are confident that you can use them safely. Potassium hydroxide and sodium hypochlorite are harmful if swallowed and can irritate/burn skin and cause eye damage; but at the concentration used in lichen tests can be used safely with care. Chemical tests kill the parts of the lichen they are applied to, so use sparingly. see https://britishlichensociety.org.uk/learning/chemical-tests
Lecanora barkmaniana K+ yellow, C-.
There are two dust lichens that are a very difficult to separate in the field, Lepraria incana and L. finkii. Lepraria incana is very common in similar habitats to L. finkii It has finer, smoother granules of a slightly bluer colour, it is UV+ white and does not have a fluffy white layer that L. finkii has. https://britishlichensociety.org.uk/sites/default/files/Lepraria%20finkii_0.pdf
Cladonia caespiticia is similar to Cladonia coniocraea; C. coniocraea has stubby stalks that stick up (podetia)
In the revision of the Lichens of Great Britain and Ireland (LGBI3), the stand lichen flora, the keys for Graphidaceae family lichens now start with the nature of their spores which can only be done with a compound microscope. However some Graphidaceae (writing or script lichens) can be identified approximately from morphological features, as these above. But they are named with the Latin s.l. (susu lato (in the broadest sense)) i.e. they may a similar but related species but not this exact species (i.e. s.s. (sensu stricto (in the strict sense))
A very common lichen on many trees in Sussex
Lecidella eleachroma is one of the commonest lichens on Sussex Trees; it has tiny button apothecia (fruiting bodies) on a pale thallus. It is easy to confuse with Amandinea punctata, Tiny Button Lichen. They can be separated with chemical reagent spot tests: Lecidella elaeochroma turns slightly orange with an application of a spot of C (sodium hypochlorite); its thallus also turns orange in ultraviolet light; Amandinaea punctata does neither of these thing.
Only use chemical tests if you are confident that you can use them safely. Potassium hydroxide and sodium hypochlorite are harmful if swallowed and can irritate/burn skin and cause eye damage; but at the concentration used in lichen tests can be used safely with care. Chemical tests kill the parts of the lichen they are applied to, so use sparingly. see https://britishlichensociety.org.uk/learning/chemical-tests
Similar to Lecidella eleachroma, see notes above
Phlyctis argena is extremely common on most Sussex trees. The orange mark is a result of the reaction to Potassium hydrochloride; demonstrating spot testing to participants on a walk. It is not necessary to chemically test Phlyctis argena, as it it easy to identify from its morphology
Elf Ear Lichen always grows on bryophytes (mosses and liverworts) on trees; here it is growing on Minute Pouncewort, Myriocoleopsis minutissima
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