fine lichenheather and lichenlichen bank beach heather colors tormentosa

Island Beach SP False Reindeer Lichen

On July 24, soon after driving into Island Beach State Park, I found abundant false reindeer lichen, often mixed or dominated by beach heather (Hudsonia tomentosa). This false heather is found widely in the NE but does not grow in the SE. The toxic chemicals given off by its roots apparently do not affect deer lichen. I followed three hiking trails (each under a mile) off the main road, which runs north to south the entire length of the park. Two trails led east to the beach shore of the Atlantic Ocean: one from the Nature Center and one from the Interpretive Center. The Reed's Road Maritime Forest Trail led west to the bay. GPS coordinates at my start: 39°53'55.3" N and 74°04'56.2" W

Click any photo above to go to a page with a large version. I'm converting these to Zoomify for easier download (requires Adobe Flash), with links to the JPEG image version. Most of the lichen I found was in bare spots along the road or paths leading to the beach dunes. It is spectacular. The lichen photo pages are: Fine Lichen, Heather and Lichen, Lichen Bank, Beach Heather, and Colors Tormentosa. See also related plants. Back to the New Jersey Island Beach SP travel page.

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