Lichens
"Lichens look like plants, but they are actually communities, or a marriage
of plants if you will. A fungus and an alga live together in the lichen.
The fungus provides the alga with water and anchors it. The alga uses the
light of the sun to make food for the fungus. You see? They work together
and both benefit."
The Secret Under My Skin, page 60.
Lichen on Signal Hill, St. John's, Newfoundland
Photo by Janet McNaughton
About Lichen
One of the first people to suggest that lichens were really two kinds of
plants growing together was Beatrix Potter, author of the Peter Rabit books.
Her theory was dismissed by scientists of her time.
Lichens grow in places on this planet where other plants cannot. In
deserts and in the high arctic. They are important because they can show
how pollutants travel around the planet.
To see photographs of lichen and find out more about these fascinating
plants, visit the Lichens of North America
web site.
These lichen were also found on Signal Hill.
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