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Ramalina fastigiata
A beautiful light gray to almost white densely tufted fruticose lichen. The erect branches are somewhat angular, slightly flattened, hollow, appearing inflated. Pic 3 is cropped to show this. Apothecia are concave disc which become flat to convex when mature. Size: 4 cm, branches 1- 2 cm, apothecia .5 - 2 mm.
Spotted on the ground in forest with secondary growth trees of cedar, fir, hemlock, maple and alder. Typically grows on sun exposed tree bark and twigs. Ramalina fastigiata is very sensitive to air pollution. 314 m (a.s.l.)
This is the first time I've come across Ramalina fastigiata, which is interesting considering how much time I spend in the woods here in Washington. Not sure if this is a rare find. There are also 18 known varieties or subspecies of Ramalina fastigiata. List:(https://eol.org/pages/1004913).
Spotted on Jan 11, 2019
Submitted on Jan 13, 2019
2 Comments
Thank you so much Greg! This was a fun one to research - I had never seen it before. The area where I found it was hit by a wind storm the day before (50 mph winds). Several trees were blown over.
Love the images Brian...my favourite is #2.