The Joys Of Rediscovery

Day 92: After several days of suffering with the flu, this morning I felt sufficiently recovered to take a very short walk out into the yard to hunt for a "blog shot," i.e., my photo for today's post. I made a circuit around the house and had gotten as far as Big Doug's nearest root when something caught my eye. "Oooooh," I said. "What's this?" It was certainly nothing I'd seen in the yard before, so I took photos where it lay and then moved the specimen to better light for the image shown above. In sunlight, I could see that it was yellowish-green, not light grey-green as it had appeared in the shade. Knowing that I'd have to inspect it more closely to make an ID, I brought it in the house and set it down beside me while I referred to Brodo. The magnifier revealed some telltale structures along the lobe margins while other minor details narrowed it down to three species. I ruled out two, settling on Platismatia tuckermanii...waitaminit...Platismatia tuckermanii? Isn't that the lichen Patty sent me from Maine? Ah, the joys of rediscovery! Yes, referring to my pictures from last fall, it was the identical specimen. Boy, did I feel silly! What can I say? I've been sick. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

Maine Amusement

Day 7: Patty's thoughtful contribution to my Maine amusement kept me occupied for the better part of one evening and a sizeable chunk of morning. Once they had rehydrated sufficiently for me to be able to separate the layers for a look at the medullary ceiling, I confirmed that the Hypogymnia was H. physodes, a species which also grows in the Pacific Northwest. The Bryoria was a bit more challenging because it was quite dry and wiry even after soaking. Of course stiffness is characteristic of Bryorias. That's why they're known as "horsehair lichens," but this one was exceptionally crisp and only a small bit was present, tangled in the sample of Platismatia tuckermanii. The specimen was somewhat darker than our local version, a factor I attribute to a more abundant algal component. Indeed, more blue-green algae was present in two of the Platismatia colonies than in the third, and the sample of Bryoria had been extracted from one of the darker Platismatias. Lichen colour can be quite variable depending on the amount of algae in the tissue. Even so, my identification of Bryoria capillaris is somewhat hesitant; the taxonomy is currently in a state of flux with various sources disagreeing on whether or not east-coast populations should be considered separate from those on the west coast. I've gone with the lumpers in this case.

Best Present Ever!

Day 6: I knew I had a surprise coming in the mail from my sister-of-the-heart Patty, and saw by its tracking progress that it was due for Wednesday delivery. Patty had warned me that it was perishable and fragile, so I was in a hurry to get home from work to liberate it, whatever it might be. I slit the tape and opened the box to find another box made of clear plastic, and in it a mass of...LICHENS!

Y'know, I'm a cheap date. It doesn't take much effort or expense to entertain me. I was going to leave the project for morning and better light, but I was just too curious about the foliose species which had caused me to blurt "Rag-bag!" before I'd even felt the specimen. Okay, it resembled our local limp-washrag Platismatia, but there were some distinct differences which told me it wasn't the same thing. I spent the next 45 minutes with Skunk squashed under the 40-pound field guide on my lap and a lighted magnifier pressed tightly to my eye as I analyzed the black pycnidia along the lobe margins and searched for pseudocyphellae. At last I was content with an identification: Platismatia tuckermanii, named for lichenologist Edward Tuckerman who likewise lent his surname to Mount Washington's famous Tuckerman Ravine. He also has a whole genus of lichens named for him: Tuckermanopsis. There are still a couple of other species to sort out in this best-prezzie-ever, but I think they need to hydrate a little longer.

Comparative Lichenology

Day 41: East meets West for today's essay! A friend recently sent me two lichen specimens from Maine in the hopes that I could identify them for her. One of them was a member of the generic category of "Old Man's Beard lichens," specifically Usnea filipendula (Fishbone Beard, top photos). It put me in mind of my favourite among the Usneas, Methuselah's Beard (U. longissima, lower photos), so I thought it would be fun to present them paired, and thus took a short hike to a location where longissima is abundant.

As you can see, Fishbone is much more compact and delicate. Longissima grows in graceful strands up to ten feet in length. Filipendula branches abundantly, and Methuselah's Beard consists of threads on a central stem, much like a Christmas garland. A microscopic view reveals that isidia (grain-like reproductive units which detach easily from the thallus) are present on both specimens, but are more numerous in the case of filipendula. Both species are excellent air-quality indicators. Sensitive to even small amounts of pollution, Usneas only grow where the air is pure.

The Hole Story

Day 39: Another puzzle submitted to me by my sister-of-the heart Patty resolved itself after some reconstitution of the subject matter in a sealed container with a piece of wet paper towel. You have to love lichens for their resiliency! While Patty was in Maine recently, she sent photos which led me to a tentative identification in this case of Cladina mitis, Green Reindeer Lichen. What I was not expecting was that she would also submit a physical specimen so I could take a closer look. When it arrived in the mail a few days ago, it had withered substantially, as had a small sprig of an Usnea. Examining it under the 'scope, it was hard to tell how many podetial tips were present, curled in on themselves as they were, but I did observe what I thought was the "gaping hole" between the tips, making me wonder if it might be Cladina stellaris instead (pointer shows the hole). However after further moisturizing, the tips have opened out into threes, ruling C. stellaris out. Given the other physical characteristics, I'm reverting to my initial identification of Cladina mitis. As for the Usnea, the jury is still undecided, but I believe it is U. filipendula, Fishbone Beard Lichen, one of the generic category of "Old-Man's Beard" lichens.

See? Urchin Spines!

Day 38: Seriously, it doesn't take much to keep me amused. Just give me a jar of sand from an "exotic" east-coast location and my microscope, and I'll be occupied for hours.

See those little green bits at the end of the built-in pointer? Those are sea-urchin spines, almost invisible to the unaided eye and barely visible under a hand lens. Under the microscope, they're revealed as textural beauties, ridged longitudinally. Occasionally, you can catch one in cross-section, and in those moments, you might think you'd found a faerie's zucchini dinner. Proportionally, this "sand" seems to be an almost equal mix of rock and shell fragment. A riot of colour, unlike the Pacific Northwest's drab grey grit, bits of opalescent mother-of-pearl and purple mussel-shell catch the eye amid the softer tones of cream and tan.

Sand was not the only thing in my mailbox yesterday. The friend who sent it included two lichen samples as well. See? Presents don't have to be pricey to be fun!