Day 80: What a great way to start the new year! I picked up a lichen specimen on my way back from Sulphur Creek Falls yesterday after deciding that it was a Ramalina of some sort, and therefore a new genus for my unofficial lichen life list (or rather, that I found on my own instead of having one handed to me by an expert). Ramalinas are characterized by small perforations in the thallus; some species are so perforated that they look like lace. Although I couldn't see the holes with my naked eye, other details clued me in: both upper and lower surfaces were uniform in colour and the branches were flattened. I thought I might have trouble keying it out, but its growth habit and size quickly narrowed the options. Under the microscope, the perforations were visible, as well as a few very small patches of soredia. Bingo! At least I'd thought to take a picture of the tuft in the field, because by the time I got done picking it apart, it qualified as "specimen destroyed during analysis." May the joy of discovery be part of your life in 2019!
No comments:
Post a Comment