Unbecoming Nomenclature

Day 41: I have to admit that the first time I heard Icmadophila ericetorum referred to as "Fairy Barf," I thought my leg was being pulled, or rather I should say that I thought the person who said it was applying their own personal "pet name" to the species. Lichen common names are not standardized like those of most vascular plants, so it's a bit of a free-for-all out there. Surely no one would call a lichen "Fairy Barf!" Little did I know at the time of lichen taxonomists' predilection for determining acceptable nomenclature while (apparently) stinking drunk, or I would have understood. Needless to say, I have since encountered the term in numerous references. Although I don't like it (I dislike common names anyway), it does seem to be peculiarly descriptive of the species' pale pink apothecia. The light green crust beneath them is the lichen's thallus (body), and its hue fails to supply a better suggestion. In any event, although I can't speak to a timetable for when the fairies deposit it, you're likely to find it on decaying stumps of cedar.