Lichen
Ever since I saw a photo of a hummingbird's nest, I have been enchanted by the tiny, mysterious beauty of lichen. The nest was covered in at least a couple different species of lichen, the majority of which was a type of shield lichen (see link below). I rode my bike over to my favorite book store,Bookman's Alley, and haunted the natural history section hoping to find a used lichen field guide. No such luck, so I broke down and bought a new copy of "Lichens of the North Woods" by Joe Walewski, and its been difficult to keep my nose out of it. Lichens are actually 2 (sometimes 3) different organisms living cooperatively: algae and/or cyanobacteria, and fungus. While algae can exist on its own, the specific species of fungi that have developed the ability to "lichenize" cannot. It's gets more complex, but that is a very, very basic explanation of a lichen. Lichens can also act as bio-indicators of air quality, as they are collectors of airborne substances. Good air quality may be signified by the lichen diversity in a given area. While walking the dog a couple of days ago, I picked up a small fallen branch and identified Powdery Goldspeck, and Mealy Rosette Lichen (not 100% sure about that). Wee! The painting above is of Cladonia fimbriata or Trumpet Lichen. For more information, and photos of lichen mentioned in this post:
Lichens of North America
I love lichens! Can't id a single one but find them extremely beautiful. I'm fortunate to live in the midst of woods that haven't felt the touch of humans in 80+ years (well, except for my house). I've come across some rocks/cliffs that are covered thickly with very old lichen colonies. I'll have to send you some photos one of these days - they're gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI bet you have beautiful lichen diversity! And I bet some of them are very old, indeed. I just read that there are lichen colonies up to 4500 years old! Identification seems pretty complex, especially since many can only be identified by chemical testing.
ReplyDeleteohhh beautiful diana!! the watercolor bleeds are so whimsical, just like your subject :)
ReplyDeleteThere's a great Alice Munro short story called 'Lichen.' It's not actually so much about lichen, but that image acts as a very powerful metaphor. I think you'd enjoy it (once you finish reading about the donkeys, that is). Kirby!!
ReplyDeleteAnd Alice Munro is Canadian, is she not? They have many lichens in Canada.
ReplyDeleteoh diana, how I have longed to wax all poetical on lichens! They make me totally geeky with delight! The day after you posted this, I went in to work to discover a new shipment (??) of moss and lichens, including some species of Cladonia that is red and nubbly and swells up when spritzed with water. (well, who wouldn't?) And while I am technically opposed to lichens in commerce, I do now have a small specimen on my front porch... Love that painting and hope to see more from our friends the lichens!!!
ReplyDeleteDiana:
ReplyDeleteElly and I spotted a blue-gray gnat catcher nest at Knob Noster S.P. here in Missouri last week. It was larger than a hummingbird nest, but still tiny, and was also lichen encrusted. I photographed some lichens on a hawthorne I found in the park. I'll post them on my blog in the next few days.
Fiske
Gorgeous watercolor! I love lichens, too.
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