title: Lichen elemental composition distinguishes anthropogenic emissions from dust storm inputs and differs among species: Evidence from Xilinhot, Inner Mongolia, China.
abstract: To test the applicability of lichens in the biomonitoring of atmospheric elemental deposition in a typical steppe zone of Inner Mongolia, China, six foliose lichens (Physcia aipolia, PA; P. tribacia, PT; Xanthoria elegans, XE; X. mandschurica, XM; Xanthoparmelia camtschadalis, XPC; and Xp. tinctina, XPT) were sampled from the Xilin River Basin, Xilinhot, Inner Mongolia, China. Twenty-five elements (Al, Ba, Cd, Ce, Cr, Cs, Cu, Fe, K, La, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, Sb, Sc, Sm, Tb, Th, Ti, Tl, V and Zn) in the lichens were analysed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The results show that Cd, Pb and Zn were mainly atmospheric in origin, whereas the other elements were predominantly of crustal origin. Compared with other studies, our data were higher in crustal element concentrations and lower in atmospheric element concentrations, matching with the frequent, severe dust storms and road traffic in the area. The elemental concentrations in lichens are both species- and element-specific, highlighting the importance of species selection for biomonitoring air pollution using lichens. We recommend PT, XE, XM and XPT for monitoring atmospheric deposition of crustal elements; XPC and XPT for Cd and Pb; PA for Cd and Zn; and PT for Cd.
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Hua-Jie
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Severe Weather, Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center on Forecast and Evaluation of Meteorological Disasters, Nanjing University of Information Science &Technology, Nanjing, 210044, China.
authors.forename: Shi-Bo
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Si-Wa
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Hebei Geological Laboratory, Baoding, Hebei 071051, China.
authors.forename: Liang-Cheng
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Hebei Geological Laboratory, Baoding, Hebei 071051, China.
authors.forename: Xiu-Ping
authors.initials: XP
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Hebei Geological Laboratory, Baoding, Hebei 071051, China.
authors.forename: Yun-Jun
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Jian-Sen
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Di
authors.initials: XD
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Yi-Dan
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei 071002, China.
authors.forename: Qing-Feng
authors.initials: QF
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D000397:Air Pollution / Q000032:analysis*; D002681:China; D004391:Dust / Q000032:analysis*; D017753:Ecosystem; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D006801:Humans; D008011:Lichens / Q000737:chemistry*; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D004391:Dust; D014131:Trace Elements