A lichen tree

I think there's a small conifer underneath the lichen, unless the lichen has grown like that all by itself!
Malcolm

Mosses and Lichens - Bruaich Jerich

Macro shot of a very wet rock in my favourite little (almost!) suburban glen.  Becky can probably identify these? - Carl

Lichens in Bridgend

The fallen timber provides an excellent opportunity to examine the lichens up close.  many of the trees are absolutely festooned...  Definitely an opportunity for Becky...!!  :-)
   Carl

Wet days are great for lichens!

Something to cheer us all up today; Martin sent me two lichen photos from Lochgilphead which reminded me that this wet stuff is appreciated by some living organisms, if not all. The first species is abundant on Islay, but I'm not sure of the second. Both species grow on trees annd the first one is also known as Lungwort (hence its scientific name). I wasn't sure sure of the identification of the second one so sent it to one of the lichenologists who were here in May. I paste his reply to my query here:

"both are Lobaria.
As you say, the first one is Lobaria pulmonaria.
The second is Lobaria scrobiculata. Usually it is more of a brown-grey colour, but when very damp it goes slate-blue, as in the photograph. The network of sharp ridges over the surface is, however, pretty much diagnostic (of this and L. pulmonaria).
In Lobaria pulmonaria, the algal partner is a green alga (Chlorophyta), and so the lichen remains green when wet.


In L. scrobiculata, the "algal" partner is a blue-green alga (Cyanobacteria), and the blue pigment shows through when the lichen is wet."

Thanks for sending the photos Martin!
Becky

Lobaria pulmonaria

Lobaria scrobiculata

Lichenologists on Islay

Members of the British Lichen Society (www.thebls.org.uk) are holding a field meeting on Islay this week, the first time a group of experts like this has been here, so we are hoping for a great many records, hopefully with several new species for the island. This is quite likely, as lichens, as with several other taxa on Islay, have not been very well recorded hitherto, with a knowledgeable lichenologist visiting a number of times in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a few others recording here in the mid-1980s, but very little since.
Malcolm