pyxie cups

In the learn something new every day category, I discovered that these little stylish plant dudes are called pyxie cups or goblet lichen. Now I know! Here's some more info:"Pyxie cup or Goblet Lichen is common on rocks, soil, and rotten wood. This lobed, scaly thallus has stalked, upright cups (to 1 in.)... Many varieties in N.A."

I found this out while flipping through the freaking adorable Golden Nature Guide (non-flowering plants), which I found at the Friends of the Library sale today for a QUARTER. (it was half off day.) It's such a great little book - I love the illustrations. It is now my goal to find all the Golden Nature Guides - I love having something to look for at book sales.

Here's a picture of the cover of my 1967 edition. SO CUTE! How did it last to the second day of the sale?

(do you suppose there are ever any lichen misunderstandings?)

crazy person: I'm a lichen
innocent bystander: a lycan? like a werewolf or something? (mimes scary werewolf face and claws)
crazy person: no, a LICHEN. (does best lichen impression which isn't very good)
innocent bystander: I think that might even be worse.
crazy person: it is, it is. There are no books or movies about sexy lichens, that's for sure. It's hard out here for a fungus and symbiotic algae. That's what a lichen is you know.
innocent bystander: indeed. (flees)

here's some further LICHEN INFORMATION, because The More You Know and all that jazz... Under the chapter heading of LICHENS I learned that "Lichens are pioneer plants which usually grow where other plants do not furnish competition. ... These slow-growing, long-lived, sun-loving plants flourish in cold, dry climates, in forests and on mountains--wherever the air is clean and unpolluted. Reindeer and caribou eat some lichens; extracts from a few species are used as antibiotics. The best known use of lichens has been in making dyes for Harris tweeds and for litmus paper."

HARRIS TWEED! LITMUS PAPER! This is the kind of bizarre fact I'm delighted to know. Thank you Golden Guide.