Smooth-footed Powderhorn

Primary thallus: squamulose, persistent; squamules: 5-10 mm long, 2-5 mm wide, irregularly, crenate-lobate, esorediate or granularly sorediate; podetia: 15-52 mm tall, up to 4 mm wide, greenish gray, unbranched or sparingly dichotomously branched, subulate, developing cups at the apices; cups: shallow, irregular, 1-3 mm wide, corticated interiorly; surface: corticated below, usually completely sorediate in the upper half of their length; cortex: smooth, continuous from basal portions upwards, thinning above, becoming chinky-areolate and giving rise in places to discrete soralia; soralia: 0.5-1 mm diam., soredia: farinose to granular, but corticate patches and squamules (up to 5 mm long) sometimes occurring among soredia; Apothecia: infrequent, on cup margins, pale to dark brown; ascospores: ellipsoid to oblong, (8-) 14-16.5 x 2.5-6 micro meter; Pycnidia: frequent, on cup margins, ovoid, sometimes slightly constricted at base, with hyaline gelatin; conidia: 3-8 x 0.5-1 micro meter; Spot tests: K- or K+ dingy yellow to dingy brown, C-, KC-, P+ red, UV-; Secondary metabolites: fumarprotocetraric acid and accessory convirensic acid

NOTE: Cladonia coniocraea and C. ochrochlora are morphologically very similar (some authorities are inclined to unite them.) I believe this is C ochrochlora based on (a) Cladonia coniocraea is usually found without cups, but C. ochrochlora rarely lacks them completely. (Note 2 or 3 cup-like formations) and (b) C. coniocraea is said to be found on wood, whereas this specimen was growing on a mossy rock.

Other species easily confused with C. coniocraea (and therefore C. ochrochlora) include C. norvegica, C. bacilliformis, and C. macilenta