Fauna
Fungus

Gold Cobblestone Lichen

Pleopsidium flavum

Also known as Yellow Cobblestone Lichen

Gold cobblestone lichen paints vertical granite faces and arid cliffs with vivid, chartreuse-yellow crusts that radiate outward in tightly packed, cobblestone-like tiles. The brilliant coloration comes from rhizocarpic acid, a natural chemical sunscreen that protects the interior green algal symbiont from intense ultraviolet radiation at high elevations. Expanding by mere millimeters over the course of a century, colonies clinging to sheer rock faces can easily be several hundred years old.

LichenAlpineSlow-Growing
Gold Cobblestone Lichen reference1 / 7
(c) Don Loarie, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by
—observations
—countries
—peak records
Not EvaluatedConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXNot Evaluated — not placed on the risk ladderRed List categories, explained →
Key facts
Diet & preyPhotosynthetic (via green algal symbiont)
Predators
  • Oribatid mites
  • Springtails
  • Rock-dwelling snails
ThreatsAir pollution, rock climbing abrasion, and severe habitat warming
HabitatsVertical granite faces, felsic rock outcrops, and arid montane cliffs
Life spanCenturies to millennia
Classification
  1. FamilyAcarosporaceae
  2. SpeciesPleopsidium flavum
Range & activity
Range data is not available yet.
Safe observation
Interaction riskLow
  1. Low
  2. Moderate
  3. High
  4. Very high
Why interaction risk is low
Safe to observe at a normal distance; never eat wild fungi based on app identification alone.
Responsible observation
  • Observation: Use a hand lens to view the tiny, sunken central fruiting bodies and radiating lobed edges.
  • Preservation: Avoid scraping or placing climbing hardware over crusts, as damage takes centuries to recover.
Related species
Help improve the field guideSomething wrong?

Report a name, category, or profile issue for review.

Checking your Fauna account…