Description: This distinctive, brown-green Cladonia lichen has cups arising from a base thallus of notched scales (squamules) that have plain white undersurfaces. The cups are flared and form proliferating tiers to two to five storeys from within the cup. On dry moorland slopes especially four to six years after a heather burn. Mainly western Ireland.

Key Identification Features:

• Squamules small, notched, white below; Pd + yellow. NB: if reaction Pd + red, this may suggest a related subspecies, pulvinata
• Stalks with cups, flared, and proliferating in multi-story fashion like gymnasts forming a tower.

Original text submitted by Vince J. Giavarini

Distribution Map from NBN: Cladonia verticillata at National Biodiversity Network mapping facility, data for UK.

iNaturalist: Cladonia verticillata at iNaturalist World Species Observations database.