ASCOMYCOTA | LECANOROMYCETES > LECANORALES > Parmeliaceae

Genus Letharia, presumably meaning 'branched' or similar as Evernia

Common name:            Wolf Lichen

Synonym:                    Evernia vulpina

Habitat:                         Montane - alpine and subalpine coniferous forest

Substrata:                     Bark

Growth form:                Corticolous

Thallus:                  Fruiticose

Apothecia:                    Lecanorine, but rare

BLS identity rating:        N/A

Thallus attached at one point so it appears fruiticose, whereas anatomically it is actually a foliose species as described for Evernia prunastri; typically growing 3-5cm tall with a slightly larger spread, comprising strap-like, pliant lobes, which are copiously branched and entangled, forming a semi-erect, shrubby, beard-like, often hanging mass; colour varies slightly from bright lemon-yellow to a greenish-yellow; both of the reproductive structures, soredia and isidia, are present and often abundantly; apothecia are extremely rare.

The species can be toxic to mammals due to the yellow pigment vulpinic acid and historically has been chopped and mixed with meat as a poison for wolves and foxes, hence the common name Wolf Lichen. It has also traditionally been used as a pigment source for dyes and paints, such as those used by certain native North American Indians.

It is a boreal-montane lichen that grows on the bark of conifers in the Pacific Northwest and some areas of the Rocky Mountains in North America, as well as in mountainous regions of western and central Europe. It is relatively common in the Alps in both the montane and subalpine belts. To the best of my knowledge, it has not been recorded in Britain.