Lichens in mallee

Lunch time

We stopped for lunch in a conservation reserve beside the Morgan-Burra Road, the Goyder Highway. It was quite windy so we were glad of the shelter.

At first glance the grey vegetation doesn't look very exciting but I found lots of interest. A few of the shrubs were flowering (see next post), there were a few birds calling ... and there was the lichen.

Lichen is slow-growing so it was interesting to see a number of species on the trees, small shrubs and the ground.

The ground lichens are of particular importance because they help to hold the otherwise bare soil in place and provide habitat for small insects. Lichens on the ground are easily disturbed by animals like sheep, kangaroos and people and they take a very long time to recover.

Lichen growing on the soil

 Lichen on the ground

Lichen growing on the ground under trees and shrubs. This one was interesting because it wasn't attached to the soil.

The following lichens were growing on small branches of shrubs and trees. Often there were two or three species together and they were much more colourful than those on the ground.

Hattah to Kapunda

We headed into the wind today as we headed west through the Riverland, tracked the path of the Murray until we crossed the bridge at Blanchetown and then left it to find its way south while we made our way to visit relatives at Kapunda. It's a delightful area that deserves more attention than we gave it today. Gales and skiffy showers discouraged us from venturing out of the car but I think we were lucky that we escaped the damaging winds that struck other parts of Victoria and South Australia.

Many of the mallee trees are in bud and some are flowering so it's going to be a wonderful spring I think. It was good to see some of the sandy ground covered in lichen and moss 'just like it orta be', but sad to see the damage that can be done by vehicles. Even one set of tyre tracks can destroy lichens that have taken years to grow on the surface.

Moss and lichens crust the sandy surface.

Damage done by vehicles at a wayside stop.

Mallee trees can be hundreds of years old, regrowing from lignotubers time and time again.

And even though it's June I managed to find several small shrubs in flower. Hopefully that's a sign that I'll find more as we move further north.

Minutiae

The more I learn the less I know. There are huge gaps in my knowledge of the natural world. And I'm forgetful as well so I've forgotten some of the things I know I used to know. Perhaps it would be better if I specialised, built up a supreme body of knowledge around one area, such as birds. But that would mean ignoring everything else and the world of nature is so interesting so that's not going to happen.

One day on our recent trip to Alice Springs Rosalind and I decided to have a rest (nap) after lunch to recharge the batteries. Helen, who is 'more senior' than both of us, announced that she wasn't going to be in that because she had fewer years in which to explore. What a great role model. (I still had a nap though.)

Here are some things I don't know anything about. We found minute lichens and liverworts (I think) growing in damp depressions in desert woodlands around Alice. Don't they look interesting?

Look at me

Lichen is fascinating stuff. I ignored it for years but now the complexity of it draws me in.

I know from my reading that it's actually a symbiotic relationship of fungi and algae rather than a single entity - but I'm not the person to ask how that happens. All I know is that the end result is beautiful. Yesterday I noticed that the older branches and twigs on the Bursaria growing near the river were completely covered by bright yellow lichens. Click on the photo to get a better look at the intricate shapes.

Lichens grow very slowly and can be damaged very easily. But humans have been using it for a very long time for medicines, insulation, stuffing mummies, producing litmus, alcohol production, hair products, dog food in the Arctic regions, floral decorations and of course, fabric dying. I wonder what colour my bright yellow lichen would produce. Yellow?

http://www.lichen.com/ has lots of information about lichens.