Cladina stellaris (Star-tipped reindeer lichen)

Cladina stellaris (Opiz) Brodo

Cladina alpestris (L.) Nyl.

Cladonia alpestris (L.) Rabenh.

Cladonia stellaris (Opiz) Pouzar & Vezda

Star-tipped reindeer lichen, northern reindeer lichen, star reindeer lichen

Parents	Unknown	Genus is not in the current taxonomy
Genus	Cladina
Species	stellaris	Starry, star-like, with spreading leaves or petals arranged in a star-shaped fashion

About plant names...

This lichen is circumpolar, occurring above the Arctic Circle and below the Antarctic Circle. In North America, it occurs throughout much of Canada and the northern United States, in forests of cone-bearing trees (boreal forests).

Identification: Star-tipped reindeer lichen is a fruticose lichen: it looks like a miniature shrub. They are densely branched, and lack a main stem. They form compact, rounded mounds. Similar lichens are compared below.

[Foreground: Gray Reindeer Lichen (Cladina rangiferina)] · 1/1/2021 · Mt. Battie (Elev. 780'), Camden, Maine ID is uncertain

	You are here Cladina stellaris	*Cladina rangiferina*	*Cladina mitis*
Common Name	star-tipped reindeer lichen	gray reindeer lichen	green reindeer lichen
Plant	Photo by Pablo Alberto Salguero Quiles. Fruticose lichen, 2-4" (5-10 cm) tall, in compact rounded mounds. Pale green or yellowish. Heavily branched, with no main stem. Branches are hollow.	Fruticose lichen, 2½-5" (6.3-12 cm) high, grayish white. Branches are hollow, and end branches often point in the same direction.	Fruticose lichen, 2-3½" (5-8.9 cm) high, yellowish-green to yellowish-gray, composed of multiple branches from a main stem, like tiny trees.
Habitats	Boreal (cone-bearing) forests, on soil or thin soil on rocks.	Boreal (cone-bearing) forests, on soil or thin soil on rocks.	Boreal (cone-bearing) forests, on soil or thin soil on rocks. Often with mosses and grasses.
Type	Wild	Wild	Wild

Online References:

Cladina stellaris on BorealForest.org

Cladina stellaris on Stephen Sharnoff Photography

Cladina stellaris on Wikispecies

References:

Walewski, Joe, Lichens of the North Woods, Kollath+Stensaas Publishing, 2007, p. 37

Cladina stellaris description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

1/1/2021 · Mt. Battie (Elev. 780'), Camden, Maine ID is uncertain

[Foreground: Gray Reindeer Lichen (Cladina rangiferina)] · 4/3/2010 · Mt. Battie (Elev. 780'), Camden, Maine
≈ 11 × 7" (27 × 18 cm) ID is uncertain