Friday, August 28, 2020

Rock-dwelling blobs

I need a ladder. Or rock-climbing equipment. And maybe a draught from the fountain of youth.

I am intrigued by these cushions of moss high on rock faces, and can never get close enough for a really good look.

Bottle moss or California Amphidium, Amphidium sp.

It forms tight cushions on shady rock faces. These were on a north-facing cliff beside Upper Campbell Lake.

Strange shapes of moss cushions

I posted photos of this moss, from a nearby cliff, back in December of 2016. At that time, in the wet winter, it was a brilliant green. Now, at the end of summer, it is olive green to orange.

Compare the colour; this was from December, 2016

I identified it back then as the bottle moss, Amphidium lapponicum, but after looking at dozens of photos, I'm not so sure any more. INaturalist has 3 Amphidium species in this area, and A. californicum looks like a better match. But I'd need to climb the rock and get a sample to be sure.

Moss buttons and ferns on a jagged rock face.


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Necesito una escalera portátil. O equipo para escalar rocas. Con un trago de la fuente de juventud, también.

Veo este musgo y quisiera verlo de cerca, pero siempre está bien arriba de mi alcance en las rocas.

Crece en botones o cojines, siempre en fachadas de piedra. Estos están al lado del lago; hace cuatro años, en diciembre, saqué fotos de otros un poco más adelante; en esa temporada del año eran de un verde vivo. Ahora, al fin del verano, están desde verde oliva hasta anarnajado.

Son, creo, del género Amphidium, pero sin lograr obtener una muestra, no puedo estar cierto de una identificación. ¡Necesito esa escalera!

1 comment:

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