A Whole Different World - 1 © Pillow

This is an image of a world we rarely closely examine; the world of lichens and barnacles. This and the following images have all been taken during a walk along one of the shorelines along the Oregon coast. Lichens are composites organism that arise from algae or cyanobacteria (or both) living among filaments of a fungus in a symbiotic relationship. They come in many different colors, sizes, and forms. They do not have roots that absorb water and nutrients as plants do, but like plants they produce their own food by photosynthesis using sunlight, carbon dioxide, water and minerals in their environment. Barnacles are marine crustaceans with an external shell that attaches itself permanently to a variety of surfaces. Barnacles ...