Phaeographis dendritica

White to greenish 'creamy' thallus with open dendritic lirellae, as they open up through the thallus they can give the impression of a ship's bow wave.

This specimen was found on Petersfield Heath on an oak twig.

The dark border to the lirellae continues right under the fruiting body as can be seen here, the dark bit  is the lower surface.

Elongated spores with lens like cells and 7-9 septate, 30-50 x 6-10 mu

 

Parmotrema reticulatum

Very similar to Parmotrema perlatum and less common, but can be found on Petersfield Heath. It seems to form more upright defined rosettes. Very much a southern species it is found near the south coast.

The lobes are dark in the middle but a tan colour towards the ends of the lobes with rhizines (root like hairs) all the way to the lobe edge which is crinkly and turned up.

The surface of the lobes has a reticulate white pattern said to resemble cigarette paper and a strong red reaction with K.
 

Two very common and easily identifiable lichens found all over Petersfield

 The large 'apple-green' (slightly yellowish-green) patches you see on trees, especially on the Heath are Flavoparmelia caperata, one of our commonest and fastest growing lichens -the patches may only be decades old.

Sometimes you see fruiting bodies 'apothecia', you can also see granular soredia towards the centre of the patch, these are bits of the lichen that can blow away to start another one.

The second lichen is Parmotrema perlatum, this forms the more bluey green similar sized patches often found on the same tree.

This one is less flat on the tree trunk and often has fluffy soredia along the edges of the lobes. Another give away are whiskers along the edges of the lobes.

Nothing is simple in the lichen world and there is another species of Flavoparmelia on the Heath, it looks much the same but is all round smaller with fluffy rather than granular soredia. This is Flavoparmelia soredians. The chemistry is also different, a spot of alkali turns it red whereas its larger relative doesn't react.

Godshill Church, Isle of Wight

 An unexpected bonus during a sandwich stop on a cycle tour, picnicking in the Godshill churchyard threw up a couple of interesting species.

Ramalina siliquosa, which I think of as a typical west coast species on rocky cliffs above the high water mark was growing on the church wall, but I suppose all of the Isle of Wight is sprayed with salt in winter storms. It is not common in the south-east.

I found out later that this is also a known site for the rare Rocella phycopsis, but I was very excited to stumble across it.

The two species seem to favour slightly different environments, here the Ramalina is on the open wall to the left and Rocella favours the corner.

This must be subtle environmental differences and not antipathy since they can be found side by side in the middle.

Teloschistes chrysophthalmus

 We've been following an individual Teloschistes chrysophthalmus on an oak twig on The Heath for the last year or so. The twig is now dead and in quite an exposed spot, just hope it isn't broken off to throw to a dog.

Since then we've found it in several locations along the crest of the Downs from Butser Hill to Old Winchester Hill always on hawthorn or blackthorn. Very much a twig lichen and often associated with Xanthoria parietina, never more than one per tree, it seems to be spread by some fairly long distance agent rather than multiplying in one location. This is a species that is extending its range northwards, we are still near the northern limit of that expansion.

Ramalina canariensis

 A different looking lobe of Ramalina on an oak branch brought down by the storms caught our attention at Bopeep copse. 

It turned out to be Ramalina canariensis, distinguishable by the inflated lobe tips that split open to reveal greenish soredia and UV+ white where the medulla is showing through.

A quick visit to St Mary's Church Hayling Island

 St. Mary's Church is one of a few known locations for Rocella phycopsis in our area, it is more than 20 years since it was last recorded so I popped by to check up on it. Restricted to the north east corner of the church building the colony seems in robust good health, older clumps producing plenty of soredia and some younger individuals coming on.

There was an odd looking mosaic on a dark block of 'ironstone' incorporated into the wall

some internet research found a very similar mosaic recorded from stained glass in Brittany

http://www.lichensmaritimes.org/index.php?task=fiche&lichen=699&lang=en

so it looks as if this is Llimonea sorediata although the authors are not quite sure if it isn't Dirina massiliensis.........

There was some Dirina massiliensis on the church, here it is muscling in on a very areolate Arthonia (Opegrapha) calcarea and Caloplaca dalmatica