Roman Türk

Roman Türk (born 14 April 1945) is an Austrian lichenologist and plant ecophysiologist noted for combining classical floristics with experimental physiology. He taught for decades at the University of Salzburg and became a central organiser of lichen research and mapping in Austria, especially the use of lichens as bioindicators of air quality. From 1994 to 2002, he served as the first chair of the (BLAM). He co‑authored the national checklist of Austrian lichenised fungi and later worked on lichen ecology in continental Antarctica. By 2017 his bibliography comprised more than 270 publications, including several books and regional floras.

Life and career Roman Türk was born on April 14, 1945 in Střemily (German: Richterhof) in the Nazi Germany-annexed part of Czechoslovakia (now non-existent village in the Boletice Military Training Area in the Czech Republic). He grew up in Steyr, Upper Austria. He studied biology at the University of Vienna (major in botany, minor in zoology) and earned a Dr. phil. in 1971 with a dissertation on climatic effects on water potential in higher plants, supervised by the botanist .