R E T S M A

[lichenaday]

Cladonia subtenuis

Dixie reindeer lichen

Look I would give this lichen a less problematic name if it were up to me but they refuse to make me the master of lichen naming as of yet so when they do I will change it I promise. Anyway, this foliose lichen is native to eastern North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, where it grows in large colonies on sandy soil and decaying wood in open grasslands and forest edges. It has a many-branched, bushy thallus with a pale yellow to whitish-gray surface. Unlike fellow reindeer lichens C. rangiferina and C. arbuscula, the axils (where the branchlets divide) of C. subtenuis are usually closed, and the branchlet tips are typically unbent. These straight branchlets are often topped by tiny, brown apothecia.

images: source | source

info: source | source

[effinbirds]

[lichenaday]

Herpothallon rubrocinctum

Christmas wreath lichen, liquen de Navidad

This incredibly distinctive crustose lichen grows mainly on bark (though occasionally also leaves and rock) in subtropical and tropical woodlands of the Americas, the Caribbean, and Africa. It has a grayish-green to pale green thallus dotted with bright red isidia-like bumps and surrounded by a bright red, cottony prothallus. It often grows in large swaths of converging thalli, covering large areas of the host tree bark in garish red. And I know inevitably someone will ask why H. rubrocinctum is the way that it is, and I simply have to say that I don't know, and isn't that delightful? That there are still some beautiful mysteries in this world? And today of all days, I simply feel content to be glad that it is, and save my investigations into why for tomorrow.

images: source | source

info: source | source | source

[retsma]

[thefugitivesaint]

Charles E. Martin (1910-1995), ''Gebrauchsgraphik'', Vol. 24, #12, 1953

[ambermaitrejean]

Northern flicker. Jefferson County, Colorado. Photos by Amber Maitrejean

[herpsandbirds]

Powerful Owl (Ninox strenua), chick, HE SCREMMM!!!, family Strigidae, order Strigiformes, VIC, Australia

photograph by Adam Blyth

[thememedaddy]

[best-bird-tournament]

today in "incredible photos not well-suited for the polls":

me, as a teen, every morning before high school

[birds-in-posts]

Common swift (Apus apus)

[onenicebugperday]

Needle Felted Clown Weevil by Little Skrunks

This artist’s Website (Shop) // Etsy // Instagram // Ko-Fi

[transmasc-malleus]

curated 🌿🌻🍂🍁

[herpsandbirds]

[ymutate]

Rick Hobson

"Sea Matryoshka (A whale eats a seal that eats a penguin that eats a fish that eats a calamari that eats a sea cucumber, and finally, there's aplankton)" Nesting dolls created in Semenov, Russia for the Helsinki-based studio COMPANY.

[retsma]

@kaziklec UwU

[heartnosekid]

neope goschkevitschii caterpillars ฅ^>⩊<^ฅ | piyo_bug on ig

[alwaystiredshark]

For more of my art @alwaystiredshark

[elza32358]

Mid-century Christmas card by the amazing artist Ralph Hulett.

[lichenaday]

Cladonia fimbriata

Trumpet lichen

Here she is y'all, the big one, the most classic of all classic lichens, the quintessential Cladonia, you know her, you love her, C. fimbriata! *tiny fanfare emits out of these tiny little lichen trumpets* This gorgeous creature can be found growing on wood and organic soil in mossy or disturbed areas in both suburban and woodland environments. It isn't as picky about growing conditions as some of the other Cladonias, so long as its got a little shade and enough water, it can be found in suburban environments, woodlands, heaths, dunes, and even tundra worldwide. Here's a picture I snapped of one recently growing on a garden fence in Iceland:

You can recognize C. fimbriata by its abundant, farinose soredia on the basal squamules and on the tall, thin podetial stalks topped by trumpet-shaped scyphi (cups).

images: source | source | source | source

info: source | source | source