Pat Wolseley facts for kids

Pat Wolseley is a British scientist who studies plants, especially tiny living things called lichens. She is also a talented illustrator. Her work has helped us understand how the air we breathe affects the environment.

Becoming a Scientist

Patricia Anne Wolseley was born in 1938. She went to Somerville College, Oxford to study plants. After college, in 1960, she started working at the Natural History Museum, London. Pat always drew pictures for her research. She even went to art school later to improve her drawing skills.

From 1966 to 1977, Pat worked at the University of Malta. After that, she returned to the Natural History Museum in London.

Discovering Lichens

For about ten years, Pat Wolseley studied plants that live in water. Then, she took a course about lichens. She was amazed by how many different kinds of lichens there were and how beautiful they looked. This made her decide to focus her research on them.

Her first big project on lichens was in the Celtic rain forest in west Wales. Working with another scientist named Peter James, she found 250 new types of lichens in that area!

Lichens and Air Quality

Pat Wolseley's main work focuses on how the air affects lichens. She looks at how chemicals like sulfur and nitrogen from pollution change where lichens can grow.

Lichens are very sensitive to air pollution. Different types of lichens can handle different amounts of pollution. This means that by looking at the lichens growing in an area, scientists can tell how clean or polluted the air has been over time. For example, some lichens cannot stand ammonia, nitrogen oxides, or sulfur dioxide. If these lichens are missing, it tells us the air might be polluted.

Pat works with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. They measure how much ammonia is in the air. This helps them understand the link between air quality and lichen health.

Helping Citizen Science

From 2007, Pat Wolseley was part of the Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) network. This was a special project where everyday people could help scientists. It was a way to get more people interested in science and the environment.

Because Pat knew so much about lichens and air quality, she helped create the "air survey" for OPAL. This survey allowed people to record information about lichens in their local areas. This information then helped scientists understand air pollution across the country.

Awards and Recognition

Pat Wolseley has been recognized for her important work. From 2006 to 2008, she was the President of the British Lichen Society. In 2008, she became an Honorary member of the society.

In 2012, she was featured on a BBC Radio 4 show called The Life Scientific. This show talks about the lives and work of famous scientists.

In 2021, Pat received the Marsh Botany Award from the Marsh Charitable Trust. This award recognized her amazing work using lichens to check air pollution. It also honored her efforts in teaching others how to identify different lichens.

Tropical Lichens

Pat Wolseley also works on lichens in tropical forests. She has long-term projects in places like Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia. In these areas, she uses lichens to see how the environment is changing. This includes looking at air quality and the effects of logging (cutting down trees).

Her work in these tropical forests involves creating guides and lists to help identify local lichens. She has even helped find new species of lichens that scientists had never seen before!

See also

In Spanish: Patricia Anne Wolseley para niños

• Category:Taxa named by Pat Wolseley