Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Peter Braubach

@peterbraubach.bsky.social

1.3K followers 1.2K following 2.9K posts

Thoracic pathologist, with a focus on ILD and transplant. Dad of 2 👱👱 (03/18, 08/21). Bakes bread 🍞. Cares for a garden 🌻. Bikes to work 🚲. Biodiversity enthusiast. Mainly thinking about lichens here.

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 11h

My current line of thought would be Gyalolechia flavovirescens however I do not see a C purple reaction. Microscopically C darkens the cortex to darker orange.

I would appreciate any ideas to get me new lines of thought.

2-celled spores in water (after heating briefly)

On addition of C cortex darkens to dark orange.

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 11h

Tonight I am troubled by this Caloplaca sp. #lichen. K+ cortex. Short ellipsoid spores with wide septum (9,6-11 x 5,5-6,8 µm). In northern hessia on silicous rock with Trapelia sp. (I think) and others I don't know. Keying out I arrive at costal sp. which this is definitely not fitting.

Detail of yellow lichen crust with yellow apothecia.

1 3 5

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 1d

A recurring problem with discussions of Sarah @lilithelina.bsky.social and I. I also tend to interrupt (e.g. when I think I know the answer). I see this as a valid form of discussion while being equally open to an interruption from the other side.

1 1

Reposted by Peter Braubach

The Oatmeal @theoatmeal.bsky.social · 1d

Let’s talk about AI art.

theoatmeal.com/comics/ai_art

A cartoonist's review of AI art - The Oatmeal

This is a comic about AI art.

theoatmeal.com

51 460 920

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 3d

Link to a full apothecium composite image (60xW/2x mag changer)

301 - Rinodina bischoffii Panorama.jpg

drive.google.com

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 3d

Pigmented 2-celled ascospores with a black band over the septum points me towards Rinodina bischoffii - on limestone from the old quarry in northern Hessia I've visited this summer. #Lichen

A couple of dark pigmented ascospores with an even darker band running across the septum.

Section of apothecium in water with pigmented spores.

grey lichen thallus with black apothecia, some with thalline margin

1 1 13

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 3d

How big is it? Perhaps the size of a medium boulder?

1 2

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 3d

Regarding immersion depth. The apothecia are thin (dry) and sit in pits, some nearly flush to the substrate, some protruding. Wetted they turn brown ever so slightly and swell to convex.

Maybe this information helps to clarify the points you raised. Thank you for putting in time to this.

1 1

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 3d

Thank you for your comments Anthony! I went through similar thoughts and initially worked on this with the hypothesis of a cyanolichen. When sectioning the very brittle flakes you get a lichenized crust - I am not sure if the black is caused by pigmented algae (or cyanos) on top. What do you think?

Section through a piece of the black crust showing green algea enveloped in hyphae. Topped of by black cells.

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 4d

I'm not asking for species ID - I just want to get some idea what kind of organism this is. Some kind of truffle? @hilaryrosed.bsky.social

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 4d

I have no clue what I found here, on sandy soil (in shaded forest) between moss. Small round spherules, heavily melanized all throughout. Cut surface grainy. On microscopic view (squash) some oil bubbles and hyphae but no spores or other features I could identify. What is this?

Two black shiny structures protruding between moss in sandy soil. Approximately 1 mm in diameter.

Cut surface of black globular structure, homogeneously black with grainy texture.

squished microscopic preparation with large air bubbles, black fungal? elements and small oil droplets.

1 3 5

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 5d

Maybe (!) a slight brown tinge in the ap. centre when wetted. Large-ish elipsoid spores ~25x9 µm and pigmented epihymenium and thallus. Green algae. C-.

I think this could be Clauzadea metzleri.

What do you think?

1 2

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 5d

I would like to share a #lichen I am working on for the last 2 nights (not finished yet) and would appreciate some input.
On soft limestone with V. muralis, V. nigrescens and S. pruinosa. Black flaky thallus and black adpressed to slightly immeresed apothecia, swelling convex when wet. 1/

"Birds eye" view of the black flaky lichen on limestone next to verrucaria nigrescens (right) and Verrucaria muralis (bottom left) and Sarcogyne pruinosa (top centre)

1 3

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 5d

Never gets old - Pin #lichen Chaenotheca trichialis with some pruina on the stalk and around the base of the head. Rectangular green algae (Stichococcus) and globose pigmented spores.

Collected today on oak bark on a playground near Hannover.

Grey green thallus of a lichen with pin shaped apothecia with fluffy top.

Section of an apothecium in water with the spores washing off.

Detail of the algea, rectangular and green.

Detail of the spores, golden brown, round (in water)

1 4 14

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 8d

I guess if you set the frequency just right it might destroy them... xkcd.com/1217

Cells

xkcd.com

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 9d

Some common lichens on calcareous rock - Circinaria calcarea, Protoblastenia rupestris and Verrucaria nigrescens. #lichen

Detail view of white lichen thallus with immersed black apothecia (Circinaria calcarea)

3 orange apothecia of Protoblastenia rupestris.

Areolate lichen crust with dark olive colour and black perithecia (Verrucaria nigrescens)

2 15

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 10d

Irgendwann wird man hier halt sesshaft. Aber ja so könnte man es ausdrücken.

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 10d

Bleib doch einfach hier... Hannover ist doch nicht so schlimm. Nach 10 Jahren hat man sich auch dran gewöhnt.

Reposted by Peter Braubach

AJCann @ajcann.bsky.social · 10d

Diffusion Diffusion Diffusion
Lots of technical fiddling going on recently so not much entomology posting, but something worthwhile from my setup experimentation. Learn more: ajcarthropoda.blogspot.com/2025/09/diff...
#macrophotography #macro #microscopy

2 3 18

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 10d

This reminds me that I have to find a diffusion solution for my stereo microscope ring light. Or cross polarization...

1 3

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 11d

The difference between men and boys... is not fully compensated by the tilting ergo tube of the new stereo microscope and he still has to sit on my lap to reach viewing height.

Small kid looking into a big stereo microscope

1 15

Reposted by Peter Braubach

Bengi Kendrick @fungiwithbengi.bsky.social · 13d

"Dead" wood

A colony of calicioid fungi on some exposed rotten wood, most with yellow rings around their stipitate apotheciate named Calicium trabinellum. The ones which lack yellow rings are much thicker and are a different species.

1 1 28

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 14d

Microscopy images can be found here:

sites.google.com/view/misiden...

Misidentifying Lichens - Coenogonium pineti (#218)

back to index

sites.google.com

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 14d

Coenogonium pineti (Ach.) Lücking & Lumbsch - a green #lichen with pale translucent apothecia commonly found on bark of pine. Watch out for dark green patches in fissures and under flakes of bark. The apothecia are tiny (0,1-0,4mm) and most of those which I found only have few.

Green lichen with cream colored apothecia on brown flakey bark of pine.

Detail of translucent cream colored apothecia with a distinct margin.

1 18

Peter Braubach @peterbraubach.bsky.social · 14d

"Hamsteroortjes" #lichen Normandina pulchella . Somehow you just have to take a photo when you see them.

green squamuels of Normaninda pulchella lichen on algae and moss covered bark

1 3 39