Jeff, Stopping by Woods

It does look tasty…but only a very small number of lichens are (occasionally) eaten by humans...and even those generally taste like crap:) Even caribou mainly stick to 3 or 4 of these matt-forming, fluffy white Cladonia species out of the 20,000 or so lichen species that are known

Photo of an orange lichen growing on the white bark of a birch tree. The lichen looks like a roundish mound of orange discs which are the apothecia (spore producing structures).

A Xanthoria/Sunburst lichen, I think.
NWT, Canada. The orange lichen is about 3cm wide. #lichen #fungi #fungifriends

Thanks! lichens actually don’t hurt trees at all. It can seem like lichens are hurting trees because the number of lichens on a tree increases with tree age. So, by the time trees are quite old and dying (old age) they are often covered in lichen…leaving the impression that lichens are the cause.

Photo of several Cladonia podetia which look like grey golf tees. The top of the two larger podetia are ringed with several bright red blobs (apothecia).

Cladonia sp lichens. Newfoundland, Canada. Lichens are approx 2cm high.
#lichen #fungi #fungifriends

Thank you!

Photo of a green-grey lichen growing flat on dark rock. Lichen has frilly edges. The centre contains dozens of small discs that are olive coloured with white rims.

Lichen, Protoparmeliopsis muralis. NWT, Canada. lichen is about 5cm in longest dimension. #lichen #fungi #fungifriends

A few summers ago.

Photo of two green-grey Cladonia podetia that look like trumpets from Dr. Seuss book.

A couple of Dr. Seuss trumpets.
Cladonia lichens. NWT, Canada.
These lichens are about 2cm high.
#lichen #fungi #fungifriends

lichens are composite species consisting of a fungus and a photosynthetic partner - either an alga, a Cyanobacterium or both.

Photo of a flat section of rock completely covered in flat-growing lichens. Includes two yellow lichens, one orange lichen and one grey lichen.

A lichen collage on seaside rock. Newfoundland, Canada. Includes Xanthoria (leafy yellow), Physcia (grey), Rusavskia (orange) and Polycaulinia (the other yellow lichen). #lichen #fungi #fungifriends

I was thinking something similar…but in the fox family.

It’s actually creeping juniper. This up-close view has a bit of a succulent look.

Photo of a fungus on a juniper branch. The fungus consists of a small reddish ball with several long, oval jelly-like growths.

Cedar Rust Fungus. NWT, Canada.
#fungus #fungi #fungifriends
Fungus in pic is about 2 to 3 cm high.

Photo of a light grey lichen comprised of numerous octopus-looking branches covered in dark grey discs (the apothecia).

A Physcia sp lichen on a poplar tree.
NWT, Canada. photo covers about 6cm, left to right. #lichen #fungi #fungifriends

Photo of an off-white lichen growing on rock. The lichen has several orange discs (apothecia) and a large brain-looking growth.

Another brainy Orange Rock Posy #lichen. NWT, Canada. Pic covers about 5cm, left to right. #fungi #fungifriends.
Typically this species doesn’t have these brainy growths, but over the years, I’ve found several dozen specimens that do.

Photo of a roundish, cream coloured lichen growing flat on dark rock. About 80%of the lichen (all but the edges) is covered in dozens (hundreds?) of small round discs called apothecia.

Orange Rock Posy Lichen. NWT, Canada.
lichen is about 3cm in diameter.
#lichen #fungi #fungifriends

Beautiful lichen/photos, Uta!

Thanks! Like flowers, the orange parts are reproductive structures. They‘re called apothecia and they are the structures that produce spores.

Photo of an off-white lichen. One section of the lichen looks like brain. The rest looks like frilly leaves. Five large, orange apothecia are visible on the lichen. The lichen is growing on grey rock and on other (crustose) lichens.

Orange Rock Posy Lichen. NWT, Canada.
lichen is about 3cm in longest dimension.
#lichen #fungi #fungifriends

👍😀

Photo of a grey-green lichen growing flat on pinkish rock. The lichen is covered in prominent octopus sucker like discs which are the apothecia (spore producing structures).

Green Rock Posy Lichen. NWT, Canada.
#lichen #fungi #fungifriends
Lichen is about 4cm in longest dimension.

Photo of several Cladonia podetia that look like cream coloured trumpets (growing vertically) with the trumpet openings ringed in red.

Cladonia sp #lichen
#Newfoundland Canada.
Lichens are about 3cm high
#fungi #fungifriends

😀
We elect some too. So far though, they aren’t in charge.

Photo of a bright orange lichen growing flat on grey rock. The sort of round lichen is comprised of numerous branches radiating out from the centre.

Elegant Orange Sunburst Lichen, Rusavskia elegans. NWT, Canada.
#lichen #fungi #fungifriends

Ah, thanks, Toby!

Photo of three Cladonia podetia that look like a bouquet of red flowers.

A bouquet of Cladonia #lichen.
#Newfoundland, Canada
#fungi #fungifriends
The lichens are approx 3cm high.

Photo of a larger, off-white lichen on the left, growing over a smaller, round, grey and black lichen on the right. About half the round lichen had been over grown, half is visible. These are crustose lichens growing flat on brownish rock.

Two worlds collide. Leconara sp lichen (on left) overgrows a Rhizocarpon sp lichen (on the right). NWT, Canada. #lichen #fungi #fungifriends

A snowshoe trek to a wave-powered geyser along the East Coast Trail, yesterday. #hike #trail #geyser #snowshoe

Photo of a rectangular section of crustose lichen that consists mainly of hundreds of really tiny yellow discs…the apothecia. The lichen is growing flat on rock.

Gold Speck Lichen, Candelariella species.
NWT, Canada. Photo covers about 6cm left to right. #lichen #fungi #fungifriends

Another species of lichen. Possibly a Candelariella species.