Walking up the cycle track which runs between Ladycross and
Denny Lodge on 28th December we came upon a rather splendid collection of mosses and lichens on
a log by the side of the path. One of the lichens in particular caught our
eyes - a thalloid lichen with prominent apothecia (the fruiting bodies).
I believe that this is Peltigera hymenina, one of
the so-called ‘dog’ lichens. The common name refers to the rhizinae (their
anchorage of choice) supposedly looking like dog’s teeth. This led to them
being considered a cure for rabies (good luck with that if you get bitten by a
mad dog!)
It also turns out that various Peltigera sp. cause
problems in lawns! There are several documents on Google about how to rid your
lawns of them if you suffer from this problem.
P. hymenina is supposedly common
and widespread, but I had only come across it in field guides up until now.
On this same log were several other lichens (including Cladonia
digitata), lots of mosses and a single Scots pine seedling.
CR.