Day 103: When lichen aficionados talk about getting new kidneys, they probably aren't referring to a medical procedure. I got new Kidneys (Nephroma helveticum) during a short hike yesterday, and really hit the jackpot. The first ones to catch my eye were embedded in the mud of the trail, so obviously out of their proper arboreal habitat that I decided to do a wider survey. Within a foot or so, I found a pencil-sized twig bearing a substantial grouping, and even as I was photographing those, I noticed a second twig covered with a dense colony. As I knelt on the ground, I spotted several more, all on small debris which had been brought down from the canopy into the small opening provided by the trail. Way above my head somewhere, there was a kidney goldmine forever beyond my reach, but Nature had donated so many that I immediately dubbed the spot "Kidney Corner" and put it on my mental map. Need a Kidney? I know where to go.
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