So what new treasures would find we find as we continued on?
Just hanging there!
A string of pearls, that is what this spider’s egg casing makes me think 😉
Another spider’s egg casing had debris incorporated into it.
A limestone concretion! It was a big one. It was about four to five inches across.
Another nest that was deep and dark with about a four inch opening.
Specimen 278 for Jeanne!
A close up!
I collected these two lichens. The mint green one is a Lepraria caesiella and the neon green one is Chrysothrix xanthina! Love the colors!
This pea green spongy stuff had me stumped. I thought it was a lichen but to be sure I reached out to an expert for some help. James Lendemer, PhD at The New York Botanical Gardens suggested it could be Botryolepraria lesdainii. Sure enough when I finally found the key in the back of one of my lichen books, it went right to it. FYI, most of the keys in my lichen books are at the front of the book so it was nice to finally find the key in this particular guide LOL. Certainly this is very cool find! I am also sharing part of the specimen with James at NYBG. James has several books on lichens. The latest one is Urban Lichens with co-author Jessica L. Allen. Also in 2020 James and Erin Tripp collaborated on Field Guide to the Lichens of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. They are both good guides and now in my library!
A studio shot with water beading on the surface. Many times water will change the color of a lichen to green, letting the algae partner shine. However this one did not change colors with the water.
This lichen illustrates the crumbly or granular type that are called leprose. Truly a pretty great treasure!
Wow! What a great lichen find and love the spider cases too
Woo hoo! There’s still so much to discover! Congrats!
Splendid photos. I always love seeing all the varieties of the (not) lowly lichens.
Hi Susan! Welcome to the blog! 🙂 And thanks!