 |
| Fruticose lichen covered with ice after freezing rain. |
Fruticose lichens are the most three-dimensional lichen type. They're usually round in cross section, and most are branched, looking like small shrubs. The lichens in the lower right are foliose. They are leaf-like and look something like foliage. Neither are harmed by ice nor freezing temperature, though dry conditions will cause them to go dormant.
 |
| Fruticose lichen with apothecia (fruiting bodies). |
The same type of lichen a few inches up the branch are "blooming", producing fruiting bodies called apothecia. All lichens are an alga and fungus living in a symbiotic relationship. Most (but not all) of the fungi involved in producing lichens are Ascomycetes, which reproduce by growing a cup-like fruiting body called an apothecium. The apothecium's spores will only reproduce a fungus. To form a lichen it must combine with the appropriate algae.
Macro Monday is hosted by Lisa's Chaos. Please visit this site to participate and/or see more macros.
.
