Boulder Lichen vs Common Boulder Lichen

Porpidia tuberculosa compared with Porpidia macrocarpa

Key Differences

• Boulder Lichen is Least Concern while Common Boulder Lichen is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Boulder Lichen	Common Boulder Lichen
Kingdom same	Fungi (เห็ดรา)	Fungi (เห็ดรา)
Phylum same	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class same	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)
Order same	Lecideales (Lecideales)	Lecideales (Lecideales)
Family same	Lecideaceae	Lecideaceae
Genus same	Porpidia	Porpidia
Species	Porpidia tuberculosa	Porpidia macrocarpa

Evolutionary Relationship

Boulder Lichen and Common Boulder Lichen share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Porpidia.

Conservation Status

Boulder Lichen

LC — Least Concern

Common Boulder Lichen

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Boulder Lichen	Common Boulder Lichen
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Boulder Lichen

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and United States.

Common Boulder Lichen

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America and South America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Boulder Lichen

The Boulder Lichen (Porpidia tuberculosa) is a species in the genus Porpidia. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Native to Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Common Boulder Lichen

The common boulder lichen (<em>Porpidia macrocarpa</em>) is a crustose lichen species with a wide distribution across Europe and the Americas, recorded in Colombia, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and the United States. This species typically inhabits siliceous rock surfaces in a variety of exposed terrestrial environments across both North and South America and Europe. The common boulder lichen is classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, suggesting that its populations face potential pressures and require monitoring. As a slow-growing crustose lichen, it often colonizes hard rock substrates including granite and quartzite, forming a close symbiotic relationship between its fungal and algal components. It plays an important role in the early stages of soil formation through the gradual weathering of rock surfaces. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 5 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States