p5,6,13. Rock lichens have played an important role in the survival of native people and explorers. Product Description. They grow in waste places, on bare rocks, bare soil, dead wood, and tree bark, and can live through heat, cold, dampness, or dryness. Also some lichens grow on basic rocks, while others only grow on acidic rocks and some have particular mineral requirements. The algae or bacteria live inside the fungus, and exchange nutrients with it. Growth rates from rock lichens on glacial moraines have been used to approximate the time interval between the advance and retreat of glaciers. Decorative rocks suitable for growing lichen and moss. They may look like a cobblestone road or cracked up old paint, and are commonly called cobblestone lichens or cracked lichens,. lichen: A composite organism made up of a fungus, usually an ascomycete, that grows symbiotically with an alga or a cyanobacterium and characteristically forms a crustlike or branching growth on rocks … For a unique look, check out these fascinating rocks. The rock-breaking power of plants is greatly enhanced when seeds fall into cracks and then germinate. Lichens are really two plants growing together—a “fungus” and an “alga”. However whereever they grow, lichens grow slowly so what ever it is they are growing on – the ‘substrate’ – needs to have been around for a few years. Ideally suited for growing lichen and moss. Thus Acarospora sinopica only grows on rocks with a high iron content. Most lichens are temperate or arctic, though there are many tropical and desert species. Acarospora is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Acarosporaceae.Most species in the genus are crustose lichens that grow on rocks in open and arid places all over the world. About the only place where they do not thrive is near a city, where they are killed by smoke, dust, and coal gas! Microscopic rock fragments intermeshed with lichen thallus become loosened by expansion and contraction, as the thallus is alternately moistened and dried. Biological weathering is the actual molecular breakdown of minerals. Lichens seem to do better in drier environments, where they are not often left in standing water. There are things called lichens (combinations of fungi and algae) which live on rocks. Lichens growing on rocks, though, may release chemicals which speed the degradation of the rock into soil, and thus promote production of new soils. Lichens slowly eat away at the surface of rocks. Lichens are a symbiosis of at least two quite different organisms.The partnership always involves a fungus, which lives with one or more partners which can do photosynthesis.The photobiont partner may be a green algae and/or a cyanobacterium. In addition to providing food for their animals, Indians, Eskimos and Laplanders eat certain lichens. Some lichens can grow on many type surfaces while others are confined to specific types of trees or rocks. Crustose rock lichens are able to grow on bare rock, sinking their spreading thallus into every minute nook and cranny. Different lichen species can grow on many types of surfaces, including tree bark, dead wood, bare rock, cleared soil, rusty metal, animal bones, glass, plastic and cloth.