I’m delighted to announce another opportunity to take an online beginner lichen microscopy course with Aspen Ecology!
This beginner course will require no previous experience with microscopes. We’ll learn using live on-screen demonstration, discussion and Q&A sessions, and we’ll cover:
- How to approach the microscopic examination of lichens
- How to use stereomicroscopes and compound microscopes with lichens
- How to prepare basic slides of lichen material
- How to section and stain lichen samples
- How to interpret and understand lichen structures under magnification
- How how to deploy some special lighting techniques
Previous beginner lichen microscopy courses that we’ve taught have received glowing feedback!
Anthony is a very knowledgeable, enthusiastic and eloquent tutor. I had limited experience of studying lichens before I started this course, but Anthony explained things clearly and covered a lot of ground.
Each lesson was prepared with careful planning and attention to detail. The content was explored very well, and the practical demonstrations were excellent.
I wanted to say thank you for the course, I have learned so much, and hope to continue learning about lichens. You do this REALLY well!
You wouldn’t need to have your own microscopes to benefit from this course, though it would be ideal for practical consolidation purposes if you could borrow or otherwise access them. If you do have your own microscopes, you could try out techniques while we discuss them, but there’s no need to obtain microscopes before we begin. Indeed, we’ll start the course with advice about what sort of microscopes you need to analyse lichens.
Some practical matters:
- Six online sessions covering all the lichen microscopy basics
- Thursday mornings from 10.00 to 12.00 GMT (including a brief tea-break)
- Start date of 2 October 2025
- Fortnightly meetings to allow time for practical consolidation between sessions
- One week’s break for autumn half-term (week of 27 October 2025)
- End date of 18 December 2025
Please note that you should have some basic knowledge of lichens to benefit fully from this course. If you’re completely new to lichens, you might like to see whether we’re offering a basic introduction to lichens that would be more helpful for you. We usually start an introductory course each January.
The course fee is 90.00 GBP per participant, assuming a minimum of six participants. If you’re interested in taking advantage of this opportunity, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!
