Field Guide

Mosses, Liverworts, and Lichens

Showing 1 - 8 of 8 results
Beard lichen (Usnea lichen) on a branch
Beard Lichens (Usnea Lichens)
Usnea spp.
Beard lichens are shrubby, branching, hairy-looking lichens that grow in tufts from a single point on tree branches. They are grayish green, and the branches are round in cross-section.
Cluster of red-tipped British soldiers podetia
British Soldier Lichen
Cladonia cristatella
British soldier lichen is widespread in eastern North America. Branching stalks with bright red knobs at their tips arise from a patch of small, green scalelike structures. The red is similar to the color of British soldiers’ coats during the American Revolution.
Common powderhorn lichen (Cladonia coniocraea) at Painted Rock CA
Common Powderhorn
Cladonia coniocraea
Common powderhorn’s slender, gray-green, hornlike fruiting structures emerge from a carpet of gray-green, scalelike squamules. This lichen usually grows on old, damp wood, often on tree bases, in shady areas.
Gold-eye lichen (Teloschistes chrysopthalmus), surrounded by star rosette lichens on a tree
Gold-Eye Lichen
Teloschistes chrysopthalmus
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.
Pale gray cluster of gray reindeer lichen growing in a patch of moss
Gray Reindeer Lichen (Reindeer Moss)
Cladina rangiferina (syn. Cladonia rangiferina)
Gray reindeer lichen, also called reindeer moss, takes the form of bright ashy or silvery-gray, branching cushions that grow on the soil. The branch tips usually bend to point in the same direction, as if combed or blown by a strong wind.
Dixie reindeer lichen (Cladina subtenuis)
Dixie Reindeer Lichen (Reindeer Moss)
Cladina subtenuis (syn. Cladonia subtenuis)
Dixie reindeer lichen, also called reindeer moss, takes the form of pale yellow-green, finely branched cushions that grow on the soil. This is the most common and widespread of Missouri’s reindeer lichen species.
Sinewed ramalina, or American cartilage lichen (Ramalina americana), growing on a tree trunk
Twig Lichens (Ramalina Lichens)
Ramalina spp.
Twig lichens, or ramalina lichens, are branching, shrubby lichens that grow in tufts from a single point. They are grayish green, and the branches are distinctively flattened.
A variety of foliose lichens nearly covering the trunk of a small redbud tree, with redbud flowers in upper right
Lichens
About 436 species in Missouri
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.
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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.