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A lichen (/ ˈ l aɪ k ən / LIE-kən, UK also / ˈ l ɪ tʃ ən / LI-chən) is a hybrid colony of algae or cyanobacteria living symbiotically among filaments of multiple fungi species, along with yeasts and bacteria [1] [2] embedded in the cortex or "skin", in a mutualistic relationship.
Usnea filipendula – one of about 20,000 described species of lichen. The following outline provides an overview of and topical guide to lichens.. Lichen – composite organism made up of multiple species – a fungal partner, one or more photosynthetic partners, which can be either green algae or cyanobacteria, and, in at least 52 genera of lichens, a yeast. [1]
Nevertheless, distinguishing foreign hyphae within lichen thalli from the mycobiont proper (the fungal component of the lichen) remains a significant challenge. Recent research has broadened our understanding of lichenicolous fungi, particularly within groups such as black fungi and the genus Cladophialophora .
Lichens are composed of at least two organisms, a fungus and an alga or sometimes cyanobacteria (a type of photosynthetic bacteria) and sometimes other bacteria, fungi, or algae.
The fungus makes initial contact with the alga by growing appressoria and haustoria. The fungus grows hyphae to completely engulf the alga. The alga cell is now incorporated into the lichen. It starts increasing in cell size in response. The hyphae continue growing and swelling. The fungal structure continues differentiating into a full thallus.
Letharia vulpina, commonly known as the wolf lichen (although the species name vulpina, from vulpine relates to the fox), is a fruticose lichenized species of fungus in the family Parmeliaceae. It is bright yellow-green, shrubby and highly branched, and grows on the bark of living and dead conifers in parts of western and continental Europe and ...
Lobaria pulmonaria is a large epiphytic lichen consisting of an ascomycete fungus and a green algal partner living together in a symbiotic relationship with a cyanobacterium—a symbiosis involving members of three kingdoms of organisms.
The outer "skin" of the lichen, the cortex, is composed of closely packed fungal hyphae and serves to protect the thallus from water loss due to evaporation as well as harmful effects of high levels of irradiation. In Xanthoria parietina, the thickness of the thalli is known to vary depending on the habitat in which it grows. Thalli are much ...