Help ! Is this Cladonia firma

[Jax2000]

Hi all - can anyone please help with the identification of the Cladonia in the following picture....i am assuming C. firma as the squamule was about 8 - 10mm..

Cheers

Jax

[AlanS]

Originally Posted by Jax2000

Hi all - can anyone please help with the identification of the Cladonia in the following picture....i am assuming C. firma as the squamule was about 8 - 10mm..

I always say that people should not be afraid to make an identification, even at the risk of being very wrong, but I have to say that this one has me baffled.

How can a squamule size of 8-10 mm lead someone to "assume" that the lichen is Cladonia firma??? In fact, if it were not already apparent from the photo, the squamule size alone would confirm that the lichen is NOT C. firma - which is a small, greyish green lichen, with squamules that I would estimate at around 3-5 mm without going and ferreting out a specimen and checking it. Its commonly quoted field feature is that it has a greyish white underside with a slight lilac or violet tinge, which is true but needs to be seen in the right lighting and with the right degree of faith. A species of very thin soil on ledges on western sea-cliffs.

No information whatever is supplied about the location of this photograph, nor of habitat, which makes me a reluctant to suggest an alternative identity. However, it is indeed a Cladonia. The object that the podetia are springing from looks like a basal squamule, but I am wondering if it is some kind of malformation, perhaps a grossly enlarged squamule from an old podetium. The best known species that has podetia arising directly from large basal squamules is C. digitata, but it doesn't look right for that, and seems not to be sorediate enough. A species given to malformations and young podetia arising in odd places is C. cervicornis, but again I am far from convinced.

So beyond saying this is NOT C. firma, I am not going to be definitive on this. If we had more background information it might be worth another look. Or maybe Jenny is about and will have that extra bit of inspiration?

Alan

[JennyS]

Or maybe Jenny is about and will have that extra bit of inspiration?

Not a hope - and I never was too confident with Cladonia's!

Unfortunately I've been mainly moth-ing and leaf mining for the last 18 months and my lichen ID skills are showing the effect of lack of use but I'm hoping to move back to the UK next year and then will get a much needed chance to get out in the field with people to learn from.