Lichens and moss

In my wanderings on a rainy day last week I encountered an area along a creek in a very narrow canyon where the rocks and cliffs were simply covered with moss and lichens. I personally know very little about most lichens, but thought someone might be interested in seeing them and so I am posting the following photos with no narrative except a possible identification of two of the lichen species.

Umbilicaria phaea Tuck.

Umbilicaria mammulata

Umbilicaria mammulata

Umbilicaria mammulata

Umbilicaria mammulata

Umbilicaria mammulata

Brown-eyed Sunshine

Brown-eyed Sunshine ~ Vulpicida canadensis ~ Cetraria canadensis

In today’s steady rain, a couple of miles up Buffalo Bill Creek, the only “sunshine” I saw was this brightly colored lichen. Its yellow color is derived from two poisonous substances, pinastric and vulpinic acids which occur only in lichens and are thought to deter grazing by insects and other invertebrates. Pretty, isn’t it!

Despite the weather

Although the weather has been rather cool, wet and with snow forecast again for this weekend, the wildflowers are managing to bloom pretty much on schedule. At the bottom end of Munson Creek near the footbridge a few Trilliums are blooming today. A little further up the trail some Glacier Lilies have emerged.

Western White Trillium, Trillium Ovatum

Glacier Lily, Erythronium grandiflorum

Another mile up the trail and no flowers have appeared yet, but the lichen are doing well after a cold winter in the canyon.

Frosted Rocktripe, Umbilicaria vellea

Well, we don’t have any flowers yet, but we have lichen!

While enjoying and photographing some cliff icicles, my day was brightened up by  many accents of color on the rocks courtesy of the lichens.

These two seem to get along well together; Lemon Lichen (Candelaria councilor), a foliose lichen surrounded by Superficial map lichen (Rhizocarpon superficial), a crust lichen.

Powdered Orange Lichen, (Xanthoria fallax), a leaf lichen

Waiting for a sunny day

Today was cloudy and cool, not snowing, not raining, not really cold, and not sunny, but I decided to visit Buttercup Ridge, a tiny ridge top where this area’s very first buttercups bloom each spring. And this one is ready, just waiting for the next sunny day:

I had visited there on February 4th, and then it had looked like this:

In addition to the Buttercups, in a small clear place amidst the snow that still blankets most of the ridge, I found that Nature has created a tiny arrangement of lichens and winter moss just for the pleasure of anyone who would take the time and make the effort to visit Her special little ridge.

Who would think

that a tropical-appearing scene such as this

would exist in mid-winter on a steep, rock mountainside such as this.

Nature is just full of pleasant surprises. (Photos were taken two minutes apart.)

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