Welcome to Nevada
This gorgeous lichen found a nice home just a few feet from an 80 degree C (175 degrees F) hot spring. Lichen is yet another example of cooperation – because fungi can’t photosynthesize, which is a neat trick in a sunny place, they partner with cyanobacteria (a bacteria that can produce energy via photosynthesis) or algae. In turn, algae or cyanobacteria get wrapped up in fungal threads, providing protection that allows them to grow in some extreme (deserts, bare rock) environments. A big fungus blanket.... cozy!
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