{{Short description|British lichenologist}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}} {{Use British English|date=January 2021}} {{scholia}}
'''Peter Crittenden''' is a British [[lichenologist]]. His research largely concerns the [[ecophysiology]] of [[lichen]]s. Crittenden is known for using new techniques to study lichens, such as the use of [[3D printing]] and [[X-ray computed tomography]] to study lichen structure and [[ontogeny|development]].<ref name="Domina 2014"/> He served as the [[senior editor]] of the [[scientific journal]] ''The Lichenologist'' from the years 2000–2016;<ref name="Crittenden 2016"/> and still serves on the editorial board for the journal ''[[Fungal Ecology]]''.<ref name="Elsevier"/> Crittenden was the president of the [[British Lichen Society]] in 1998–1999, and president of the [[International Association for Lichenology]] from 2008 to 2012.<ref name="IAL Acharius Medallists: Crittenden"/> He was awarded the [[Acharius Medal]] at the 10th International Mycological Congress in [[Bangkok]] in 2014, for his lifetime achievements in lichenology.<ref name="Domina 2014"/>
==Biography== Crittenden studied [[botany]] at the [[University of London]], where he graduated in 1971. He spent two summer vacation [[Studentship#United Kingdom|studentships]] working under the supervision of [[Peter Wilfred James]]. For his [[PhD]], he moved to [[Sheffield]] to study [[ecology]] under [[David Read (botanist)|David Read]], researching the effect of [[sulphur dioxide]] pollution on pasture grasses. Crittenden started working with lichens after moving to Canada as a research [[fellow]] at [[McMaster University]]. With his supervisor [[Ken Kershaw]], he studied the role of lichens in the [[nitrogen cycle]] in [[boreal ecosystem|boreal]]-arctic ecosystems. Much of his research involved determining [[nitrogenase]] activity in the mat-forming lichen ''[[Stereocaulon paschale]]''. Crittenden eventually settled into a [[lectureship]] at the [[University of Nottingham]] in 1981,<ref name="IAL Acharius Medallists: Crittenden"/> where he remains and is Leverhulme Emeritus Professor as of 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Peter Crittenden|url=https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/life-sciences/people/peter.crittenden|access-date=12 January 2021|website=The University of Nottingham}}</ref>
==Editorship== Peter Crittenden served as senior editor of ''The Lichenologist'' from 2000 to 2019. During his tenure, he significantly impacted the journal and the field of lichenology. He initiated the modernisation of the journal's layout and printing in 2001, increasing its academic standing and [[impact factor]] from around 0.9 to over 1.5. Under his leadership, the journal introduced thematic issues and encouraged longer, more comprehensive papers.<ref name="Lücking 2021"/>
Crittenden implemented several important editorial changes, including the adoption of effective [[electronic publication]], obligate registration of new fungal names, and a policy to reject "single naked [[species description]]s" from 2016 onwards. These changes helped to improve the quality and impact of the research published in the journal.<ref name="Lücking 2021"/>
During Crittenden's editorship, ''The Lichenologist'' published 1197 papers, nearly matching the number published under his three predecessors combined (1256 papers from 1958–1999). The journal also made significant contributions to [[lichen taxonomy]], with 2069 new lichen species described between 2000 and 2019, representing 69% of all new species described in the journal since its inception in 1958.<ref name="Lücking 2021"/>
Crittenden collaborated with [[James D. Lawrey]], editor of ''[[The Bryologist]]'', to increase the quality of both journals, further enhancing the impact of lichenological research.<ref name="Lücking 2021"/> ==Selected publications== * {{cite journal |last1=Crittenden |first1=P. |last2=Porter |first2=Neil |title=Lichen-forming fungi: potential sources of novel metabolites |journal=Trends in Biotechnology |volume=9 |issue=1 |year=1991 |pages=409–414 |doi=10.1016/0167-7799(91)90141-4|pmid=1367745 }} * {{cite journal |last1=Ellis |first1=Christopher J. |last2=Crittenden |first2=Peter D. |last3=Scrimgeour |first3=Charles M. |last4=Ashcroft |first4=Carl |title=The natural abundance of 15N in mat-forming lichens |journal=Oecologia |volume=136 |issue=1 |year=2003 |pages=115–123 |doi=10.1007/s00442-003-1201-z|pmid=12695900 |s2cid=8630634 }} * {{cite journal |last1=Ellis |first1=Christopher J. |last2=Crittenden |first2=Peter D. |last3=Scrimgeour |first3=Charles M. |title=Soil as a potential source of nitrogen for mat-forming lichens |journal=Canadian Journal of Botany |volume=82 |issue=1 |year=2004 |pages=145–149 |doi=10.1139/b03-144}} * {{cite journal |last1=Seymaur |first1=Fabian A. |last2=Crittenden |first2=Peter |last3=Dyer |first3=Paul S. |year=2005 |title=Sex in the extremes: lichen-forming fungi |journal=Mycologist |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=51–58 |doi=10.1017/S0269-915X(05)00201-6|doi-broken-date=12 July 2025 }}
==References== {{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="Crittenden 2016">{{cite journal |last=Crittenden |first=Peter |title=Change of Managing Editor |journal=The Lichenologist |volume=48 |issue=1 |year=2016 |pages=1–2 |doi=10.1017/S0024282915000468 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
<ref name="Domina 2014">{{cite journal |last=Domina |first=Gianniantonio |title=The Acharius Medals 2014 Awarded to P.L. Nimis and P. Crittenden |journal=Taxon |volume=63 |issue=6 |year=2014 |page=1401 |doi=10.12705/636.32|doi-access=free }}</ref>
<ref name="Elsevier">{{cite web |title=Fungal Ecology – Editorial Board |url=https://www.journals.elsevier.com/fungal-ecology/editorial-board |publisher=[[Elsevier]] |access-date=10 January 2021}}</ref>
<ref name="Lücking 2021">{{cite journal |last=Lücking |first=Robert |title=Peter D. Crittenden: meta-analysis of an exceptional two-decade tenure as senior editor of ''The Lichenologist'', the flagship journal of lichenology |journal=The Lichenologist |volume=53 |issue=1 |year=2021 |pages=3–19 |doi=10.1017/S0024282920000560 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
<ref name="IAL Acharius Medallists: Crittenden">{{cite web |last1=Dyer |first1=Paul S. |authorlink2=Gintaras Kantvilas |last2=Kantvilas |first2=Gintaras |title=Acharius Medallists: Peter Crittenden |url=http://www.lichenology.org/Awards/Acharius_Crittenden.html |publisher=[[International Association for Lichenology]] |access-date=10 January 2021}}</ref>
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{{Recipients of the Acharius Medal}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crittenden, Peter}} [[Category:British lichenologists]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Acharius Medal recipients]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of London]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of Sheffield]] [[Category:Academics of the University of Nottingham]] [[Category:20th-century British scientists]] [[Category:21st-century British scientists]] [[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]