Summary:
This species is included to pay tribute to the vast world of lichens, many of which are included in the Order Lecanorales. A lichen is a composite of a fungus and an alga. The alga combines carbon dioxide and oxygen with the sun''s energy into sugars that provide energy for the fungus. The fungus protects the alga within its tissues and provides a steadier supply of moisture. This association is so successful that there are about 500 species of macrolichens in the Pacific Northwest that can be identified with a guide such as "Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest" by Bruce McCune and Linda Geiser. Even more are covered and illustrated in the superb volume "Lichens of North America" by Irwin M. Brodo, Sylvia Duran Sharnoff, and Stephen Sharnoff. "Mosses Lichens & Ferns of Northwest North America" by Vitt et al. and "The Lichens of British Columbia" by Goward et al. are also useful for lichens, the former for beginners, and the latter for definitive technical information. Worldwide, a fifth of known fungal species are said to be lichenized, according to McCune & Geiser. In most cases the fungi are ascomycetes but some, including the common gilled species Omphalina ericetorum and the club-shaped Multiclavula mucida are basidiomycetes. The algae are usually green algae, but about 15% of the lichens in the Pacific Northwest are associated with the blue-green algae Nostoc and Scytonema which can fix nitrogen from the air into forms usable by plants and animals. Some lichens are associated with both green and blue-green algae. (McCune & Geiser). The blue green algae are less closely related to the green algae than they are to the bacteria and are often called cyanobacteria. (Kendrick 1992). The most common traditional use of wolf lichens is as a source of a bright yellow dye. Native Americans in California have used wolf lichens as an arrow poison, sometimes mixed with snake venom. They have also been used as an external medicine for sores, or even as an internal medicine for stomach disorders. (Brodo et al.). L. columbiana is common in subalpine forests, high plateaus and ridges to timberline, occasional in low elevation forests (McCune(1) for the Pacific Northwest).

Microscopic:
spores colorless, 1-celled, 8 per ascus, (Brodo), spores elliptic (Goward)

Notes:
Lentaria columbiana is widespread throughout the Pacific Northwest but avoids the immediate coast (McCune). Distribution includes BC, WA, OR, ID, AB, CA, MT, and Mexico (Goward).

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Letharia californica (Lev.) Hue