Penny Perspectives - Baeomyces Rufus

Day 101: Although not as small as some lichens, the fruiting bodies of Baeomyces rufus (Brown Beret) are still tiny things, as this Penny Perspective demonstrates. The white stalks (podetia) and their tan caps (spore-producing apothecia) are only part of the lichen. The thallus (main body) is the pale green crust from which they arise. This species can be found growing on rock in shady locations. A similar species (Dibaes baeomyces) has a white thallus, and grows on soil.

When I set off on the Bud Blancher Trail a few days ago, my goal was a particular tree by the river which I knew to hold Graphis scripta, but as Crow plans are wont to do, this one began developing new legs almost as soon as my foot struck the ground. "Baeomyces!" I said to myself, thinking of potential material for a natural-history post, but I didn't think the "sucker hole" overhead was wide enough to allow me to reach the far end of the trail where I knew the species occurred. Then I remembered the second location, somewhat closer. When I got there, I was dismayed to find that the Baeomyces rock had been entirely overgrown with English Ivy in the space of a year. It took a bit of searching, but I finally found this last outpost of Brown Berets under a tangle of blackberry vines.

Baomyces Rufus

Day 141: First let me say that I'm reserving the right to be wrong about this one. I don't have the reagents required to perform certain chemical tests which would confirm the identification, but careful macroscopic analysis would seem to indicate that it is Baomyces rufus rather than Dibaeis baomyces. Additionally, Dibaeis is far less common in the Pacific Northwest than Baomyces, and generally occurs on soil in sunlight whereas this specimen is growing on a shaded boulder. I have observed this particular colony in all seasons now, and have witnessed the apothecia change colour over the months from a translucent pale pink upon initial eruption to a pinkish-brown later in the year. If I could observe the asci under the microscope (a process I haven't really mastered), I might be able to cinch the ID, but that requires remembering to stick a test tube in my pocket so I can take a sample. Maybe another hike is in order.

Baeomyces Rufus, Brown Berets

Day 98: It's always a thrill for me to find and identify a new lichen for my Life List ("and identify" is the qualifier), but I am a little ashamed to admit that this this dense colony of Baeomyces rufus (Brown Beret Lichen) was growing on a group of Cladonia-bearing rocks which I have studied minutely on several occasions. How did I overlook it? It may have been that the apothecia were just developing and I may have dismissed it for Icmadophila ericetorum, guilty of the sin of not looking closely enough to see the white podetia beneath the pinkish-tan berets. Icmadophila ericetorum is stalkless, but also grows from a pale green thallus (one of the most peculiar colours I've witnessed in nature). Baeomyces' thallus is slightly more yellowish, and at least with these specimens, less uniform. Under a magnifier, the thallus is revealed to be finely squamulose (scaly) or warty, but it's those little white stalks which set this species apart from Icmadophila and give away its true identity. Suffice to say that finding it in profusion at this location was quite a surprise! That'll teach me to pay attention to the whole picture, and not just the first thing which catches my eye.