Epiphytic organisms can smother and replace a pioneer lichen

Evidence

When I scan the oldest tripe with my hand lens I see they are crusted over with algae and other crustose lichens like microscopic barnacles. Some have slippery green streaks where blue-green algae have made themselves at home. These epiphytes can impede the photosynthesis of the lichen by blocking out the sun. A deep pillow of Hypnum moss catches my eye, vivid against the dull lichens. I move along the ledge to admire its plush contours. Sticking out from its base like a ruffle around a pillow are the edges of an Umbilicaria thallus, nearly engulfed by the moss. Its time has come to an end. — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 1007

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Lichens engineer soil that eventually lets competitors replace them — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom,…, 1006; A microbial nitrogen-fixing crust lives shaded beneath moss that towers over it — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural…, 228

Broader Connections

• A microbial nitrogen-fixing crust lives shaded beneath moss that towers over it #exemplifies (0.85) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Gathering Moss, 228