G LICHEN, PARAMO VEGETATION, 11,OOO' ALT. COLOMBIA
At 12,000 feet in the humid mountains of Colombia's Paramo, this lichen grows in profusion in boggy areas. Lichens are a symbiotic combination of fungus and algae enabling them to survive in the harsh climate. Here they are shaded from the intense sun by the world's largest member of the aster family, Espeletia grandiflora. In the Paramo the Espeletia grow as trees to a height of 14 feet with bark on the trunk.