Lichen seems to grow in some of the most inhospitable, unlikely, and sometimes unbelievable places. Lichens are a pioneer species, often colonising a barren rock somewhere, paving the way for moss and eventually higher vascular plants to start growing.
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| Different lichens |
When I was younger there were a few hills that were covered in old abandoned mines. Very little grew in these places as the top soil was gone and they were just rocks and sub soil that had been dug up by hand a hundred or so years ago in gold rush times. Some of these places were covered in thick beds of lichen. I used to scrape some of this off and take it home to bury in the vegetable garden. I figured it had probably liberated some of the rock minerals that may be useful for my vegetables. Now I am older I think I was onto something, on the other hand it may have contained high concentrations of heavy metals and other toxins, I will never know either way.
Lichen often slowly dissolves the rock they are growing on and releases minerals that were locked up and other organisms can use them. Some types can also absorb heavy metals and other toxins and can be used in bioremediation. Different types of lichen grow on the trunks of different trees. For years there has been debate among horticulturists whether or not lichen is harmless to apple trees or if after the lichen reaches a certain density that it can cause any issues.
Some types of lichen are extremely slow growing, while others seem to almost grow while you are watching them. Some can take extreme heat and dry, others can be frozen solid for months with no ill effects. Some lichens are simple to grow, some people might say they are almost impossible to kill. They can be hot glued onto surfaces or even mashed up and painted on to colonise a larger area quickly. Some people paint them onto gates and artworks to give a new creation an aged and distinguished look. I have seen some growing in interesting low maintenance terrariums. Yet you won’t often find lichen for sale in garden shops or online.
Another fascinating thing about lichen is that they aren’t one organism, they are two or more. Lichen is a combination of fungi and algae living in symbiosis, with each organism benefitting from the other. The way they reproduce and disperse can be rather bizarre and intricate, but I am not going to talk about any of that in this post.
As I said, lichen is fascinating, but it gets better. So much better, and that is what I want to talk about in this post.
Lichen glows in the dark but it isn't bioluminescent.
Lichen often slowly dissolves the rock they are growing on and releases minerals that were locked up and other organisms can use them. Some types can also absorb heavy metals and other toxins and can be used in bioremediation. Different types of lichen grow on the trunks of different trees. For years there has been debate among horticulturists whether or not lichen is harmless to apple trees or if after the lichen reaches a certain density that it can cause any issues.
Some types of lichen are extremely slow growing, while others seem to almost grow while you are watching them. Some can take extreme heat and dry, others can be frozen solid for months with no ill effects. Some lichens are simple to grow, some people might say they are almost impossible to kill. They can be hot glued onto surfaces or even mashed up and painted on to colonise a larger area quickly. Some people paint them onto gates and artworks to give a new creation an aged and distinguished look. I have seen some growing in interesting low maintenance terrariums. Yet you won’t often find lichen for sale in garden shops or online.
Another fascinating thing about lichen is that they aren’t one organism, they are two or more. Lichen is a combination of fungi and algae living in symbiosis, with each organism benefitting from the other. The way they reproduce and disperse can be rather bizarre and intricate, but I am not going to talk about any of that in this post.
As I said, lichen is fascinating, but it gets better. So much better, and that is what I want to talk about in this post.
Lichen glows in the dark but it isn't bioluminescent.
If you turn out the lights lichen won't glow, they are dark just like everything else. Nothing to see here, move on, they are boring, go do something else. Put lichen under an ultraviolet light and it is an entirely different story.
Most lichens will fluoresce under ultra violet light, different types will be different colours and different intensities. Some are pretty uninteresting, they kind of glow a little.
Some types glow very bright under UV light and are incredible to see. These lichens tend to fluoresce under UV light alive or dead. This means you can plant out a terrarium with these more impressive lichens and even if the conditions are not to their liking and they all die they will still look unbelievable under a black light.
Scorpions fluoresce under UV light, they look amazing and I am unable to capture this in a photo. I would not leave a UV light on them the all the time as over time they lose some of their glow and they aren’t really fond of UV light. Putting the UV light on every now and again when you really want to show them off is fine.
If there are lichens that fluoresce bright yellow or orange or green, as well as a scorpion, the enclosure can take on a look that is impossible to describe but is a sight to behold.
Most lichens will fluoresce under ultra violet light, different types will be different colours and different intensities. Some are pretty uninteresting, they kind of glow a little.
Others glow bright orange, or bright green, or any number of other incredible intense colours. Some lichens have one part that is one colour and other parts that glow another colour, others will have one part that glows and other parts that do not glow.
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| My photo didn't work, this was bright orange under UV light |
Some types glow very bright under UV light and are incredible to see. These lichens tend to fluoresce under UV light alive or dead. This means you can plant out a terrarium with these more impressive lichens and even if the conditions are not to their liking and they all die they will still look unbelievable under a black light.
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| The one on the right glows orange but didn't show in the photo |
Another fun thing that can be done is to set up an enclosure for something else that glows under UV light, and include different lichens.
Scorpions fluoresce under UV light, they look amazing and I am unable to capture this in a photo. I would not leave a UV light on them the all the time as over time they lose some of their glow and they aren’t really fond of UV light. Putting the UV light on every now and again when you really want to show them off is fine.
If there are lichens that fluoresce bright yellow or orange or green, as well as a scorpion, the enclosure can take on a look that is impossible to describe but is a sight to behold.
All scorpions have a sting, but none of the Australian scorpions are deadly to people. Some species are certainly grumpier than others, some are more laid back while others are very fast, and some species are far easier to raise than others, so not all are suitable for beginners.
Scorpions are a fascinating animal, they give birth to live young and the female carries the young on her back for some time. Another interesting thing is that adults and young of many species fluoresce different colours under ultra violet light.
Scorpions are a fascinating animal, they give birth to live young and the female carries the young on her back for some time. Another interesting thing is that adults and young of many species fluoresce different colours under ultra violet light.
Scorpions shed their skin to grow. I have an exoskeleton from a baby scorpion I had that shed its skin in the year 1999 or 2000, this will still fluoresce when I shine a black light on it. I think that is absolutely remarkable after all this time. If I kept a black light on it all the time it would eventually grow dim and lose its glow, but still glowing after more than twenty years is just incredible.
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| Baby scorpion exoskeleton |
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| The same scorpion exoskeleton under UV light |
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