Day 12: The Cladonias are particularly difficult to differentiate, to the extent that experts will often disagree even as they're standing over the results of chemical testing and microscopic analysis. That said, I hope my readers will understand when I say that I am going out on a very long and wobbly limb to identify these specimens as Cladonia fimbriata based solely on their morphological features. Specifically, I refer to the powdery surface, limited number of squamules and shape/height. Had they been fruiting, I might have had another clue. Since the tests for lichen substances in Cladonia are not something I can do at home, I did not take a sample. While the term "Pixie Cups" is generally accepted as the common name of C. pyxidata, the generic uncapitalized form "pixie cups" can be used to refer to any golf-tee shaped Cladonia.
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