Abstract: Located in the northern part of Burqin County, Xinjiang, Kanas Nature Reserve has an area of about 250, 000 hm².Based on the field investigation in the nature reserve, in this paper the eco-geographic distribution of lichens is studied. The main results are as following： (1) In Kanas region, the content of iorganic matter in soil increases and water-heat conditions become poorer with the increase of elevation, thus lichens develop well; (2) The area is sparsely populated and the natural environment is basically in a primeval state, so the highly sensitive lichens can grow luxuriantly; (3) Three denuded plains are distributed in the zones of 1, 700～2, 000, 2, 400～2, 600 and 3, 000 m a. s. l. respectively, and the branch-like lichens that can suit each individual elevation grow well on these denuded plains; (4) The distribution elevation of the sychrozonal lichens is higher on the southeastern slope than that on the northwestern slope in the nature reserve. (5) There are 14 families in Cladonia genus, which occupy 23% of the total in Xinjiang, and this proportion is much higher than that of the local families (8. 6%) in Xinjiang.

Key words: Kanas Nature Reserve, eco-geographic distribution, lichen