Do Lichens have spores?

goosey · #1 (**permalink**) 27-02-2008, 11:07 AM

I took a few picccies this morning of some lichens, it wasn't until I saw the pictures on the computer that I saw there are little puffs of smoke coming from one of them. I don't know if I disturbed them to make this happen or it was a coincidence. Do lichens give off spores like fungi then?
I haven't even got round to trying to ID it yet.

paul m · #2 (**permalink**) 27-02-2008, 12:07 PM

Yes, is the short answer: Lichens: Reproduction and Reproductive Structures - at least the fungal component of the lichen does.

Quote:

Originally Posted by goosey

I took a few picccies this morning of some lichens, it wasn't until I saw the pictures on the computer that I saw there are little puffs of smoke coming from one of them. I don't know if I disturbed them to make this happen or it was a coincidence. Do lichens give off spores like fungi then?
I haven't even got round to trying to ID it yet.

goosey · #3 (**permalink**) 28-02-2008, 08:10 AM

Thanks Paul - can't say I had ever even thought of reproductive systems of lichens. Amazing how the male and female spores find each other in mid air like that, must be some form of magnetics - complicated isn't it

.

paul m · #4 (**permalink**) 28-02-2008, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by goosey

............- can't say I had ever even thought of reproductive systems of lichens.

No, it doesn't occupy a lot of my time either!

Quote:

Amazing how the male and female spores find each other in mid air like that, must be some form of magnetics - complicated isn't it

.

More complicated (or perhaps a lot less?) than I think you think!

I learned about fungal reproduction many years ago so had a quick check ..... I think my vague knowledge still stands but try Asexual reproduction - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

My memory is that most fungi reproduce asexually so the spores are just, in effect, unicellular fragments of the larger organism. However, some of them work towards a "sort of" sexual reproduction (involving "sort of" meiosis) combining the genetic material of two different cells. These are not generally described as male or female because they look exactly the same (only the genes may be different). In my youth they were simply called "+" and "-"! 1/2 a/b would be equally useful!

I leave you to discover more .....

Time_witch · #5 (**permalink**) 19-03-2008, 10:15 PM

lol! it's a great place this one! BTW and FYI some people present allergic reactions to lichens.

mtngoat · #6 (**permalink**) 20-03-2008, 01:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Time_witch

lol! it's a great place this one! BTW and FYI some people present allergic reactions to lichens.

I better watch myself around those puffballs then... Can they be scraped off a surface and regrown in a glass jar or something?

paul m · #7 (**permalink**) 20-03-2008, 07:30 AM

If you had a laboratory you could probably make up a culture fluid but generally fungal spores will only germinate in very specific circumstances - a particular type of rotting tree or other vegetation, for instance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtngoat

I better watch myself around those puffballs then... Can they be scraped off a surface and regrown in a glass jar or something?