Macrophotograph of a lichen Xanthoria aureola, growing on a flint church wall, Norfolk, UK, showing orange disc-shaped apothecia or spore producing bodies. Visible also are isidia, small warty outgrowths which detach & start a new plant. Symbiotic organisms, lichens consist of an algal & a fungal partner. The fungus benefits from the photosynthetic activity of the alga. The advantage to the alga remains unclear, but may lie in protection from drought & intense light. Slow growing organisms (1-2mm per year), they live to immense ages, colonising tree trunks, soil, rock, & mortar. Lichens are sensitive to sulphur dioxide & hence used to monitor air pollution.

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