beard lichen

beard lichen, (genus Usnea), genus of yellow or greenish fruticose (bushy, branched) lichens with long stems and disk-shaped holdfasts, which resemble tangled masses of threads. They are widely distributed and occur in both the Arctic and the tropics, where they are eaten by wild animals or collected as fodder. In the past, beard lichens were used as a remedy for whooping cough, catarrh, epilepsy, and dropsy, and they have been used also as an astringent, a tonic, and a diuretic. Some species of Usnea also produce an orange dye. Beard lichens are sometimes confused with the plant known as Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides), which is similar in appearance but is unrelated to lichens.

Physical description

Beard lichens consist of one or two fungi in symbiosis with a photosynthetic green alga. They commonly grow on trees, where they are pendulous or upright and resemble small leafless shrubs or tassels. The stringy body of the lichen is somewhat elastic and burns readily when dry. Beard lichens are sensitive to air pollution, especially sulfur dioxide, and can be considered bioindicators for clean air.

Major species

Usnea species are likely the “beard moss,” or “tree moss,” of the poets and Shakespeare’s “idle moss,” but they are not true mosses. Old-man’s-beard (Usnea barbata) was first described in 300 bce as a hair-growth stimulant, and extracts of various species are still sold as herbal medicines to facilitate hair growth. Hanging moss (U. longissima) looks like gray threads about 1.5 metres (5 feet) long hanging from tree branches in humid mountainous regions. The taxonomy of the Florida beard lichen (U. florida) and the Lapland beard lichen (U. lapponica), as well as that of several other species, is contentious, and the lichens may have a broad or more-limited geographic range depending on the source.