Shade lichens are characterized by rapid relaxation of non-photochemical quenching on transition to darkness

Non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) plays an important role in protecting photosynthetic organisms from photoinhibition by dissipating excess light energy as heat. However, excess NPQ can greatly reduce the quantum yield of photosynthesis at lower light levels. Recently, there has been considerable interest in understanding how plants balance NPQ to ensure optimal productivity in environments in which light levels are rapidly changing. In the present study, chlorophyll fluorescence was used to study the induction and relaxation of non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) in the dark and the induction of photosynthesis in ten species of lichens, five sampled from exposed and five sampled from shaded habitats. Here we show that the main difference between sun and shade lichens is the rate at which NPQ relaxes in the dark, rather than the speed that photosynthesis starts upon illumination. During the first two minutes in the dark, NPQ values in the five sun species declined only by an average of 2%, while by contrast, in shade species the average decline was 40%. For lichens growing in microhabitats where light levels are rapidly changing, rapid relaxation of NPQ may enable their photobionts to use the available light most efficiently.