Filamentous Lichen

Description:

These attractive clumps of pale grey lichen were seen on rocks. They appeared to start of as regular clumps with soft tight branches (pic 4) with minute convoluted bluish grey pads (pic 3). The branches appeared to open up into long pendulous filamentous strands ending in rounded brown apothecia.

Habitat:

Spotted on rocks at an altitude of 1200 mts. in a national park (Baw Baw NP)

Notes:

My thanks to John Walter for sharing his expert knowledge and for the ID. He says "This is Stereocaulon ramulosum - the brownish tips are the spore releasing apothecia and the blue-grey warty lumps are called cephalodia. This species has a dual symbiosis, the fungus and a green alga in the main structure and the fungus and a cyanobacterium in the cephalodia. Hence it represents three different kingdoms! "
How interesting !