Unusual bark colour and plating?

[Bolt]

(pppppppssssst. I don't think it's snails)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bundle 2]

I have asked the photographer to take more pics and close ups at that...Don't hold your breath though. It is more likely that he will be satisfied by the explanation!

Thanks to Albedo for posting up that image...I am now convinced that the explanation is indeed with lichens...Interesting stuff!

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

I have asked the photographer to take more pics and close ups at that...Don't hold your breath though. It is more likely that he will be satisfied by the explanation!

Thanks to Albedo for posting up that image...I am now convinced that the explanation is indeed with lichens...Interesting stuff!

 

Phuh, last time i get involved in one of your threads timmy!

 

For me this is "unsatisfactoraly closed" and needs a propper scientific investigation before allowing the mystery to be claimed solved!

 

and after all that stick you give me about "substantiation" and method!

[thomas_3rd]

im now down on the lizard workin for the trust an it took me a few days to get my head around these bark colourings too. knowing bark from lovely clean london air i was a bit stumped on me walks round here. tis dark now but all the young ash, Quercus an syca are all marked the same.... shall bang some photos up in te morning, but i also though of snails.... thing that threw me though was seein this patch work go under quite reasonable size ivy stalks:blushing:

[Bundle 2]

Look forward to it Thomas!

[Bundle 2]

Here is what I hope will be a much closer view of the bark of the same tree...See what you's think!

[Albedo]

For me this pic demonstrates how the pattern is formed. The lichen at top centre is radiating out in a circular pattern and when two of these meet they form a straightish line. The lead tips meet, then the ones next to them and so on.

 

The black dots (and this is just a guess based on looking at this pick) could be another form of lichen which is able to colonise the borders which is the only remaining site for it, where a small amount of light would be available. It seems to like living on these borders as it doesn’t take advantage of the empty space available to it, suggesting that there is a relationship going on of some kind.

 

I think this pick is quite good evidence that its not snails because it shows the lichen at different stages. I do have a picture somewhere of a snail eating a fungal fruiting body and I’m sure they graze lichen too. Just saying its not a bad theory, but the photo evidence is against it.

[thomas_3rd]

k so havin problems uploadin pics but here tis a few from today, these 3 on te same ash

 

will keep tryin wit te rest, found it on ash, oak, apple, beech an syci

[thomas_3rd]

the first and last ones are the most interestin for me with the two arguments, first has the same patchwork effect but older and with the lichin obvious and a space missing... dead lichin? but the last does really look like some sort of 'grazin' has gone on. some of these trees are right on te coast an others are inland maybe 4 of 5 miles, some are shelterd an some are exposed, the marks goes all over, even down onto small twigs, so it if this snails, theyre gotta be alot of em:blushing:

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

Here is what I hope will be a much closer view of the bark of the same tree...See what you's think!

 

Bundle, thats an amazing image, and sorts out the argument properly, mmmm bundle, laugh it up cos youll not catch me that often!

 

I realy must get to some clean air environments for a look at these, we get nothing like those lichens round here, only the nitrogen tolerants.

 

nitrogen deposition is a big problem for our eco systems:thumbdown:

 

2k a hectare is normal, were getting 50k in some regions tis bad for fungi, the ectomycorrhizea