Ramalina?

[Deborah]

Hello. Gathered these from the ground after very cold weather. They had fallen from a granite Standing stone/Menhir right on the edge of the seashore. Brittany coast. My first thought (only thought actually being a total beginner😉) is Ramalina siliquosa. But is the colour too grey? Probably dried out a little since yesterday. Any help much appreciated.

[Paul Cannon]

No, this is much more exciting (or at least it would be if you lived in Britain). It’s Roccella fuciformis. I’m not sure of the distribution in France (you know the excellent Lichens marins site?) but in Britain it has a strong south-west maritime distribution (along with a very surprising recent record from Norfolk). It has flexuose grey strap-shaped thallus lobes (they can sometimes be brownish in very exposed sites), with soralia on the lobe edges. Ramalina siliquosa can occasionally have strap-shaped lobes in young colonies, but it is a bit greener, the lobes are narrower and more irregular in form, and it produces apothecia rather than soralia.

A good start for a beginner!

Best wishes

Paul

[Deborah]

Hello.

No I don’t know the site you mention?

I have a couple more photos of the Standing stone with lichens attached. No idea if they are the same of ifcthere is enough detail to see. I will post tomorrow.

Thank you for your reply. I am fascinated and also a bit lost with such diversity and beauty… and not quite knowing how to proceed😉!

[Deborah]

Just a quick update to say I found the site and some of the photos of the Roccella you mention were actually taken at Plouescat – where I found my lichen! So… confirmation perhaps😀

[Deborah]

Hello again.

A couple of photos of the Menhir lichens. Not sure that there is enough detail for you to work with but thought you might like to see nonetheless

[Paul Cannon]

That’s quite a monument! It’s difficult to tell from the image, but it would be very surprising if Ramalina siiquosa wasn’t present in quantity, and some of the colonies look a little more green than others. Now you have an excuse to go back…

Best wishes

Paul

[Deborah]

Yes… I’ll be back 😆

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