| TAXON: | Ramalina farinacea (L.) Ach. (1810) |
| RECENT SYNONYMS: | – |
| FAMILY: | Ramalinaceae |
| GROWTH FORM: | Fruticose, heteromerous |
| SUBSTRATES: | Wide variety of bark, lignum, worked wood |
| PHOTOBIONT: | Trebouxioid alga |
| REPRODUCTION: | Soredia; apothecia rare |
| ASCUS: | If present, elongate-clavate; apex Bacidia-type; 8 spores |
| SPORES: | Ascospores if present ellipsoidal, 1-septate, 8-15 × 5–7 µm |
| NOTABLE FEATURES: | Thallus gray-green, tufted or pendent, emerging from single holdfast; lobes narrow, flattened, not dorsiventral but with algal layer all round; cortex smooth, firm; soralia marginal, neatly delimited, generally ovular; soredia farinose |
| CHEMICAL TESTS: | Medulla and soralia typically K± dirty orange, Pd+ orange-red (protocetraric acid); or K+ yellow-red, Pd+ yellow-orange (salazinic acid, ±norstictic acid); or UV+ blue-white (hypoprotocetraric acid); or all negative |
| HABITAT: | Broad ecological range where suitable substrate is available: woodland, isolated trees, hedgerows, scrub, posts and fences, worked wood |
| DISTRIBUTION: | Widespread and common in Britain |
| CONSERVATION STATUS: | Least Concern |
| LICHENICOLOUS FUNGI: | Abrothallus suecicus, Asteroglobulus giselae, Didymocyrtis ramalinae, Endococcus ramalinarius, Lichenoconium erodens, Lichenopeltella ramalinae, Marchandiomyces corallinus |
| IDENTIFICATION DIFFICULTY: | Green 1: Field identification possible |
| CONFUSION SPECIES: | Evernia prunastri, Ramalina subfarinacea |
FIELD NOTES
Ramalina farinacea is the most common and widespread Ramalina species in Britain. You’ll find this shrubby, cartilaginous lichen on a broad range of bark, natural lignum and worked wood, in virtually any habitat where suitable substrate is available. It’s also the Ramalina species most tolerant of both sulphur- and nitrogen-pollution, which helps to explain its wide distribution.
In Britain at least, Ramalina species tend to be differentiated from each other by external appearance. Spot-tests usually offer little help, as most species either test negative to all reagents, or like R. farinacea exhibit multiple chemotypes. But many Ramalina species look similar, especially when young, which can cause confusion.
Fortunately, mature R. farinacea is quite distinctive, and fairly easy to recognise. Two features are quite reliably diagnostic:
- Powdery soredia forming in neat, ovular soralia along the margins of the lobes
- Ribbon-like lobes that tend to be much longer than they are wide
That said, R. farinacea is variable in form. Specimens in polluted habitats tend to be short and tufted rather than long and pendent. And young specimens that haven’t yet produced soredia may not be separable from other Ramalina species.
Young R. farinacea without soredia may also be confused with young Evernia prunastri without soredia. But there’s a foolproof test: E. prunastri reacts K+ yellow due to atranorin. R. farinacea doesn’t react at all to K, or it reacts either dirty orange due to protocetraric acid, or more rarely yellow-red due to salazinic acid. If you’re unsure of your test result, the K/UV(dry)+ bright yellow test for atranorin is more sensitive.
LAB NOTES
Ramalina farinacea can normally be identified without microscopy.
SPECIMENS
Ramalina farinacea : England : VC28 West Norfolk : TF9428 : October 2024 : On Fraxinus trunk
Ramalina farinacea : England : VC27 East Norfolk : TG0340 : October 2023 : On Sorbus twig
Ramalina farinacea : Scotland : VC101 Kintyre : NR7385 : August 2023 : On Quercus twig
Ramalina farinacea : England : VC25 East Suffolk : TM3889 : June 2023 : On Fraxinus trunk
