Cladina Rangiferina, Reindeer Lichen

Day 185: Cladina rangiferina is one of several species erroneously referred to as "reindeer moss." While it is consumed by caribou, reindeer and other ungulates as a major component in their diets, only the "reindeer" portion of its common name is accurate. "Moss" is incorrect. Cladina rangiferina is in fact a lichen. Like many members of its genus, it prefers a habitat of thin soil, often colonizing where nothing but moss and other lichens grow. It can be identified by branch tips which appear to be combed to one side. The branches frequently exhibit brown pycnidia on their tips. At Longmire Campground, it occurs in abundance in open areas.

Cladina Rangiferina

Day 161: When is a moss not a moss? Why, when it's a lichen, or course! You will often hear members of the Cladina family of lichens referred to as "reindeer moss," but in fact they are not mosses at all despite their habit of growing on trees and rocks alongside true bryophytes. Fourteen species are known to grow in North America, and one of the most common in Mount Rainier National Park is Cladonia rangiferina (shown here). Note how the tips of this lichen appear "combed" to one side, one of the distinctions which allow it to be identified fairly reliably in the field.