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Most of us walk past lichen-covered rocks, splotched with grays, greens, and golds, without giving them a closer look. Ari Daniel Shapiro visits with mycologist Anne Pringle and graduate student Benjamin Wolfe to learn about these amazing symbiotic organisms, formed when a fungus partners with an algae. Each lichen can host an entire microcosm, a microbial landscape teeming with life. These worlds-within-worlds are proving an invaluable tool for scientists studying our changing landscapes. Umbilicaria. Photo Credit: Benjamin Wolfe
read moreDuration: 5:26Published: Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:37:25 +0000
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Ilulissat, Greenland, Grønland
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Lodbjerg Kirke
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Als Odde ved Mariager Fjord, Danmark
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Ulvedal Plantage, Karup, Jylland, Danmark
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Oulu, Finland
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Sandmilen S.f. Skagen, Danmark
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South Island, New Zealand
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Xanthoparmelia cumberlandiandia. These lichens may be immortal. See the New YoK Times article:
nyti.ms/VtDY79 . Photographed at Point Reyes National Seashore.
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2016.09.27 Repovesi National Park, Kouvola, Finland
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Beard lichen, Usnea lapponica. Maine, 28th November 2008, mixed coastal forest. The identification by Bob Andersen (thanks Bob) is tentative and I would welcome confirmation or correction
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Aufnahme vom 30. April 2006 in Klfastrnd am Mvatn.
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Clayton, California, United States
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2010.04.18 Austria, Upper Austria, district Freistadt (forest with mainly spruce, 945 m).Upper side (light grey, with isidia).Common in highland forests.German name: Baummoos (Kleienflechte)Wirth/Dll, Farbatlas Flechten und Moose (2010)
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I got a big book on lichens. We'll see how far I get on this one. Next time I need to bring a hand lens.Ok, so despite the fact that the key seemed relatively easy to follow, it didn't lead me to anything that looked even remotely right, so I resorted to flipping, and arrived at Tuckermannopsis. That plus the range maps and some Googling lead me to Tuckermannopsis (Cetraria) orbata, the variable wrinkle-lichen. Anyone have an opinions?Observed in Huckleberry Botanic Preserve, Oakland, CA, USA. The clump shown is maybe 4-5 cm wide.
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Vasterbotten, Sweden
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Stromsund, Vasterbotten, Sweden