I am overdue for another chapter in my series on lichens I’ve found and photographed. Today’s offering takes us to a place called Craters of the Moon Geothermal Walk, in the caldera just north of the town of Taupo, smack in the middle of New Zealand’s North Island. As I explored the area from the excellent boardwalk, I noticed this fallen tree that was being reclaimed by a host of colorful lichens and mosses, and I was struck by the similarity of part of its structure to the neck and head of a duck or a goose.
krikitarts 
That’s got to be the coolest named place you could have photographed a furry goose. Or lichens.
I can’t take any credit for the name of the place, but it sure piqued my interest the first time that I saw the sign. I’ve been able to visit it a couple of times since I made this shot (in September 1994), and it’s been different each time. A veritable wonderland!
Wow, I looked at the photo before I read your whole post, and I thought the exact same thing – that it looked liked a duck or a goose. However, I thought the poor thing must have lost some of its feathers. LOL. That is the coolest lichen shot I have ever seen!! Nice work :)
I just love comments that start with a “wow!” But when I read where you wrote about “the poor thing,” my imagination took a whole different tangent–zombie duck? I hope this thought doesn’t creep up on me in the middle of the night. But your LOL will surely help to quench the imaginative fires, and thanks for the great compliments! I have several more very special NZ lichens on deck, to be added to the published project in the near future.
I love it! Zombie Duck!! It could be the new blockbuster movie. :)
Moss and Lichen really are another World.
They certainly are. I have had a thought to start to gather a portfolio of mosses as well. Thanks for helping me to reawaken this thought.
The thumbnail looks like a goose, which is what I thought it was before I read the title! I love your lichen series. You really capture its ethereal qualities.
I have been drawn to them for as long as I can remember and they became one of my favorite subjects as soon as I had my first camera that would let me get close enough to render some of their amazing detail. I have more planned for posting in the near future.
Great shot! Lichen are such a fascinating subject.
Thanks, Melanie, they’re like sunrises and sunsets to me: No two are ever the same and I’ll never get tired of them.
I love lichens. I press flowers and also have found some success pressing some varieties of lichens, although they leave quite a dent in the book I am using for pressing. Great photo…Kathy
Thank you very much for your comment and for stopping by, Kathy. I reeeeally apologize for taking so long to respond. That much has been going on in my other life. Do you have a website?