Mosses, Liverworts, and Lichens
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Teloschistes chrysopthalmus
Description
Gold-eye lichen is quite small but easy to identify. It grows on twigs and small branches. It is shrubby with yellowish branching stalks. The apothecia disks are bright orange and have spiny-looking appendages around the rim.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
About 436 species in Missouri
Description
A lichen is a composite organism formed by certain fungus species that join with certain algae species. Lichens can be many colors and can be crusty, leaflike, flaky, branching, or mossy. They grow on rocks, trees, or other surfaces.
See Also
About Mosses, Liverworts, and Lichens in Missouri
Mosses, liverworts, hornworts, and lichens seem rather similar, but these organisms are in very different groups. Mosses, liverworts, and hornworts are small, low plants usually found in damp habitats. Unlike more familiar plants, they lack veinlike structures and do not produce flowers or seeds — instead, they produce spores. Meanwhile, lichens are not plants at all: they are a collection of different fungi that have photosynthetic algae living within their tissues.