I’m hiking


across sharp, black rocks.


T e sun beats down on me. T e straps of my heavy backpack dig into my shoulders. Rocks poke into my boots. I’m sweating and trying hard not to slip and scrape myself. T en I spot a white, crusty patch on a rock.


It makes me forget about the heat and the pain. It’s exactly what I’m looking for! You see, I’m in the Galápagos islands. Most


people come here to see the amazing wildlife. T ey go home with photos of giant tortoises, marine iguanas, and blue-footed birds. T ey even may have seen a shark or two. I’m here for a diff erent reason. I’m looking


for lichens. Most people don’t even notice these moldy-looking blotches on rocks and trees. T ey have no idea what they are walking past, or on. T ey don’t know that lichens are some of the most amazing living things on the planet.


Lichen Hunter I’ve been a lichen hunter for over 20 years. I’ve searched for lichens in damp graveyards. I’ve sweated looking for them in sandy deserts. For the past eight years, I’ve looked for lichens in the Galápagos. Lichens intrigue me. I like them because


they’re a little tricky. A lot of people think lichens are plants. It’s easy to see how they can fool people. Some lichens are green like plants. T ey can look a bit like moss or tiny shrubs. Yet they’re not plants at all. In fact, a lichen isn’t a single living thing. It’s


two living things. One part is a fungus, like a mushroom or mold. T e other part is an alga, like seaweed or pond scum. T ese two organisms team up to form a


lichen. T ey help one another. Each one has something the other one needs to survive.


A Galápagos marine iguana climbs on rocks covered in lichens.


20 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXTREME EXPLORER


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