Moss & Lichen: Which One Is Actually a Plant?

This video was sponsored by Skillshare. The first 1000 people to use the link will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: skl.sh/journeytothemicrocosmo...
Follow Journey to the Microcosmos:
Twitter: / journeytomicro
Facebook: / journeytomicro
Support the Microcosmos:
/ journeytomicro
More from Jam’s Germs:
Instagram: / jam_and_germs
KZbin: / @jamsgerms
Hosted by Hank Green:
Twitter: / hankgreen
KZbin: / vlogbrothers
Music by Andrew Huang:
/ andrewhuang
Journey to the Microcosmos is a Complexly production.
Find out more at www.complexly.com
Stock video from:
www.videoblocks.com
SOURCES:
www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/bea...
www.thoughtco.com/non-vascula...
www.nps.gov/arch/learn/nature...
www.discovermagazine.com/the-...
science.sciencemag.org/conten...
www.theatlantic.com/science/a...
science.sciencemag.org/conten...
www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/bea...
www.nytimes.com/2019/11/19/sc...
bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...
www.pnas.org/content/113/35/9704

[@MrZawaga]

You could make a side show all about fungi called journey to mycocosmos

[@Beryllahawk]

Oh I'm lichen this idea. (grinning like an idiot now)

[@RealAlexKlett]

@@Beryllahawk I’m almosst giddy with this idea

[@rianantony]

That sounds like a lot of fungi

[@Meadows-Bound]

Ohh I would love to watch this, this fungi has some good ideas

[@frakke4579]

That would amazing I love mycorrhizal fungi

[@BrianPennington]

Really missed an opportunity to say “Please lichen subscribe”

[@aakashjain4569]

It’s only a matter of time till lichen discovers fire

[@amandaspellen2113]

Is the Lichen Revolution. We need to prepare ourselves for war.

[@veeezis]

Lichen is pretty fire already.

[@matthewpollock9685]

Surely they will invent a new kind of farming in a sweet dank valley right in between these two rivers (meso [between] potamia [rivers]), and the ants will help. Guess what happens next! More food, and more lichens who came to buy the food, and you need lichens to help make the food and keep track of the sales, and now, you need moss shelters for lichens to live in and lichens to cultivate the moss shelters, and now, there's more lichens, and they invent things which makes things better, and more lichens come, and there's more farming and more lichens to make more things for more lichens, and now, there's business, money, writing, laws, power. Society! Coming soon to a dank river valley near you! - Bill Wurtz (sort of) Side note: If you've never seen "History of the entire world, I guess" by Bill Wurtz, do yourself a favor and click the link below. Never has so much information been so perfectly distilled into such a creative nugget of amazing infotainment. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqamn2urrZeamNU

[@toothpasteman3400]

@@matthewpollock9685 continue I'm completely invested in this universe.

[@alanhyt79]

Lichens were much worse before they settled down and became agricultural. They started off as hunter-gatherers. They're much more civilized now. Let's give them a break. I left a pocketknife and a flint on a lichen-covered log. So far, the lichens are ignoring it.

[@malusignatius]

*Sees moss with light artefacts* "Ooh, disco moss."

[@jimurrata6785]

I don't care what they are, I like them! It's like a lava lamp and it's awesome.

[@malusignatius]

@@jimurrata6785 Oh yeah, it great. Though part of my brain can't help but match it to a late night infomercial.

[@shlushe1050]

Funky

[@gregoryallen0001]

thought those were UAPs 😐

[@Vinkie]

I was certain that the 'moss and tardigrade' footage was a still image, but then I saw the tardigrade and it blew my mind. Absolutely stunning as always.

[@fnamelname9077]

Stately moss, quietly respiring the breath of the earth: Quietly respires Tardigrade: SCOOT WIGGLE WIGGLE SCOOT SCOOT SCOOT

[@Ginger5010]

I've always felt like lichens are the sort of terrestrial equivalent of corals

[@kokroucz]

That is cool comparison

[@NewMessage]

This one makes me VERY happy... bryophytes and lichens don't get enough love.

[@chrisakaschulbus4903]

that profile picture is very annoying, thank you very much :)

[@backstreetfan2887]

I heartily agree

[@crpCph]

me on a hike touching lichen gently: "tell me secrets of the past, primordial friend"

[@pilgrimonthelongroad2875]

as wise mushroom once said, "can you feel your heart burning? can you feel the struggle within? The fear within me is beyond anything your soul can make. you cannot kill me in any way that matters"

[@hic_tus]

get off me laaand ye big belly algae grabber good for nothing! lol

[@crpCph]

@@pilgrimonthelongroad2875 literally my favorite picture on the internets

[@mrexists5400]

lichen: "dinosaurs have smelly farts"

[@CMZneu]

Only 6 minutes... WE NEED MORE!!! more of fungi and mosses.

[@cadr003]

Wait this was too short! I need to know more about lichens!!

[@MatthewGaydos]

That’s mostly due to us just not having a ton of samples yet. Hopefully we can talk about them more in the future!

[@zddxddyddw]

Well, for starters, it has been found that not only fungi and algae form the symbiosis, but there are bacteria involved too.

[@ariariaris]

i would LOVE to see more mosses and fungi up close on this channel!

[@sakari1514]

I zoned out for about 2 minutes, this is way too relaxing

[@thebermudaI]

For people who want more, I recommend Robin Wall Kimmerer's book GATHERING MOSS.

[@ValeriePallaoro]

I see your words and raise you with (1) it's not Hank, (2) it's not youtube,

[@zJoriz]

"... wonder what other secrets they might possibly hide" This makes me remember the time when my brother and I as kids brought flashlights along on vacation -- and promptly started 'interrogating' mushrooms in the style common in crappy TV shows of the era.

[@PeridotEX]

What did they tell you?

[@kdcridlpaw4852]

It’s so strange/different hearing calm, soothing Hank

[@wizzardofpaws2420]

I know. He has the best voice for something like this.

[@kellydalstok8900]

How does he do it?

[@AlexanderRoux]

Verbs...syllables...well timed pauses

[@AlexanderRoux]

All in a very satisfying timbre

[@Fly0High]

"it's the moss. Moss is the plant." Thanks XD

[@rodchallis8031]

yeah, that made me chuckle.

[@noname-kx4cu]

I literally said "Your TikTok is showing, Hank."

[@Fly0High]

@@noname-kx4cu Is that a new trend in there?

[@Tahoza]

4:58 TARDIGRADE SIGHTING! MOSS PIGLET ON THE MOSS!

[@TheWorldHasGoneNuts]

That was fantastic. I would love to see more videos on lichens, I think they are truly amazing organisms. Mosses are cool, but lichens are bizarrely unique. Thank you.

[@alanhyt79]

Reminded me of first semester biology lab and the Biological Progression field trip. First, there's bare rock. Second, there are lichens. The lichens break down a tiny bit of the rock and leave organic material in the mix, creating a basic soil. Third, moss spores that have landed in the soil come to life, and patches of moss grow wider and make the soil layer slightly deeper. Fourth and so on, with higher plants, like shrubs, small trees, larger trees. Eventually, climax communities. We'd hiked a bit to get to that spot, the place where we could, without turning our heads, see everything in the progression from solid rock to lichen, to mosses, to shrubs, to alders, to Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar. When I'd processed it, I must admit I was blown away by the scope and power of life on this planet and how bare minerals can eventually become covered with plants and animals. I have looked at lichen with reverence ever since. Lichens start the process of biological progression, and if it weren't for them, my region would be bare rock and not much else. I grew up amid moss-covered trees and dark, ancient forests. Lichens didn't get enough credit out there, even though the ancient rainforests of the Olympic Peninsula were all started after the ice age ended when lichens took hold of the bare rocks, and even though some folks used certain of the myriad local lichens medicinally, as well. After the eruption of Mt St Helens, I was able to reassure a few people I knew that forests would grow on again on what was left of that mountain. "Life will find a way."

[@abishekkumar6724]

easily one of the best comments i've stumbled upon on youtube. it brings me such pleasure when i see people appreciating the nuances of biology and evolution and realize even the tiniest, superficially insignificant organisms do in fact have such importance in the grand scale of life and earth.

[@alanhyt79]

@@abishekkumar6724 Thank you very much! Nice to know someone else appreciates biological nuances as well.

[@saurabhp5932]

Only if my biology lab could have been like this, you guys are amazing

[@CMZneu]

To be fair they skip the important boring parts... chemical reactions, family classifications, etc... which are actually interesting but can get a bit tedious.

[@mugishaedimon9109]

No

[@adrianwolmarans]

A little more about lichen micro structure please!

[@glossaria2]

Ha! It's like you guys read my mind. I just collected a bunch of lichen and mosses while I was on vacay (currently paper-bagged and awaiting spare time for me to revive, study, and try to ID them, and hopefully scope out some tardigrades).

[@dracoaestas]

What a good birthday present! And actually really appropriate. I've run a moss terrarium workshop, and one of the elderly folks remembered me as the "moss lady" afterward lol. Does anyone else here keep moss terrariums?

[@karmaarachnid8345]

A year ago I built a terrarium with moss and assorted lycophytes. The lycophytes eventually died but the moss is thriving so now it's just a moss terrarium.

[@dracoaestas]

@@karmaarachnid8345 So cool! My favorites that are still going in my terrariums are Rhodobryum and Climacium mosses.

[@dstdvl]

"The tardigrade lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over, but it can't. Not without your help. But you're not helping." "Whaddya mean I'm not helping?" "I mean you're not helping. Why is that, Leon?"

[@orchdork775]

What is this a reference to??

[@Relatablename]

@@orchdork775 Blade Runner my friend. Holden: The tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over but it can't. Not without your help. But you're not helping. Leon: WHAT DO YOU MEAN, I'M NOT HELPING? Holden: I mean you're not helping! Why is that, Leon? Holden: They're just questions, Leon. In answer to your query they're written down for me. It's a test, designed to provoke an emotional response. (pause) Shall we continue?

[@pspublic13]

@@Relatablename Iconic sci-fi film. One of those rare movies that makes you sit there for a few minutes and actually think about what happened.

[@gerryk9275]

Six percent of the Earth’s surface!!! (Minus the little sample of lichen I brought home from a hike today.) More lichen and moss episodes, please!

[@oni_chan4263]

This channel makes me feel calm, and I enjoy it a lot. Thank you for making these videos.

[@robinj.p.7187]

every since I was a child climbing trees lichen has always fascinated me. thanks for making this video!

[@PhillyHippy]

I like how calm hank is being here as opposed to Sci Show where he is equally entertaining but much more high strung.

[@hellishmland1530]

I thought you were going to say... live long and prosper!! Seriously. You made my day. My best things ever are mosses, lichens and tardigrades. And this was all of them. Are you going to do a longer show on said subject. Thanks again.

[@johnjimbob6173]

Wow only 52k views? This channel is criminally underrated. Def gonna be sharing with my friends

[@johnbrady4380]

“Alice-Algae met a real Fungi, and the took a Lichen to each other.”

[@MrsBrit1]

I don't understand anyone who can walk last miss and never look at it.... But miss has always been my favorite plant. Lichens are also a beautiful, intricately shaped organism and is so many colors, yellow, green, white, pink....fascinating!

[@cambrown5633]

4:57 Hank: Check out this moss... Water bear: Haaaay guys welcome to my crib!

[@mutbrechtasengard5210]

This is the first channel/online video content creator I consider becoming a Patreon of. I do not need a Hulu, Disney+ subscription for arbitrary shows that I will never watch. This here is my sort of entertainment.

[@paulex12]

Do one on liverworts and hornworts please!

[@karmaarachnid8345]

Yes! I'd like to see video of their gametes swimming in a film of water if possible.

[@flightlesschicken7769]

@@karmaarachnid8345 I'd love to see that. Do a whole episode on the different gametes thst swim around maybe?

[@PeterVJaspersFayer]

Your calm, measured voice is a welcome balm in these troubled times. Thank you.

[@praagyadhungel1357]

I cannot emphasize how much I love this channel. Every aspect is just amazing: the narration, the music. I felt hypnotized. I find it way more visually stunning than any CGI seen on movies and series. ❤️❤️❤️

[@GhostsOfThings]

The shot of the moss and tardigrade is one of my favourites yet I think ❤️ I've bean learning about moss and more recently, fungi, so it was neat to be able to see this episode. Thank you!

[@renn_frenn]

I'm back to this channel since you guys started up, and im so glad my suggestion was taken from back then!! There's a reference ruler in the corner!!! you guys are awesome

[@Diarmuhnd]

I love growing moss and lichen and covering my potted plants soil with them. @4:57 That is such a gorgeous image.

[@ambergris5705]

Will you make a video on springtails one day? I'd love that, although I know they're not aquatic

[@ashwaryp]

My favourite channel on KZbin. Thankyou for amazing videos.

[@philmichael143]

Hank, your work is top notch. Thanks for the quality content for as long as you have.

[@DominikJaniec]

great episode!

[@oc4029]

Today's vlog Brothers episode peaked my curiosity and here I am, hearing Hank's lovely voice once again

[@liquidpza]

Mass iteration over deep time is always so woefully underestimated.

[@brendakrieger7000]

Really enjoy these videos🔬💚

[@ninjaGrim1]

love it, great vid

[@GYANAQ]

So basically Lichen is fungi that introduced Agriculture having Symbiotic relationship with Algae(Probably Cyanobacteria) for photosynthesis and Nutrient and UV Protection in return from fungi where as Moss is Bryophyte(Non-Vascular plant that does not have Xylem to transmit water And Phoelem to Transmit Food) and it is way greener in appearance

[@cristea_mihaela]

I love stentors and rotiferes and tardigrades, but I think this was my favorite episode of Microcosmos so far. ❤️ Thank you.

[@EricFdeFreitas]

I love this channel. Just love it.

[@atiger4716]

What a beatiful content this Chanel has! Thanks very much

[@vvutangmc]

Had to watch it twice you’re voice is incredibly soothing (second time was to actually pay attention)

[@1414141x]

Fascinating. Next time I see moss and lichen on a walk I will certainly give them more attention, so alongside my binoculars I will also take a magnifying glass...

[@zacharyhutchison4006]

What is faster: Lichen turning stone into soil, or humans turning beef into more humans?

[@AstronautaVerdadeiro_77]

Its humans turning humans into beef in the first place :)

[@Codysdab]

I love how Fungi saved life on earth by evolving the ability to breakdown cellulose otherwise the world would have run out of CO2.

[@willowarkan2263]

Well wouldn't have run out, lots of oxygen makes things increasingly flammable. There's other ways to release that carbon, like fire or chemical weathering or even just sunlight eventually. Not to mention the odd volcano.

[@xenopelta240]

I am so happy you are covering lichens!!! You should definitely try to cover Microsporidia in a future video, and try to get video of a cell being parasitized. A note on the referenced study: While the 2019 study did show that lichenized fungi and their algal symbionts reached land after vascular plants, it is important to remember that the term "lichen" refers to many diverse lineages of fungi that have convergently evolved the lichenized phenotype at various times in prehistory. It's still possible and quite likely that forms of now extinct lichenized fungi colonized land well before the terrestrialization of plants. Besides Prototaxites, fungi just aren't very good at fossilization unfortunately :(

[@qooiuler]

cool episode. nice music

[@mattheusmegdom]

Lovely video !!!

[@nobodyeverinhistory]

It's nice to have a video to accompany the new Minecraft snapshot release, which adds lichens to the game.

[@musicmancer]

Thanks to this video I finally rediscovered a sci-fi novel I read as a kid: Interstellar Pig! The spark I needed is that one of the alien races described in the book is a "carnivorous lichen".

[@la912]

I really like the way you narrate it

[@ikeekieeki]

good video thank you

[@tammymccaslin4787]

I love mosses and lichens!

[@silentwisdom7025]

Love you guys

[@IanGrams]

Ooh I've been fascinated by lichen ever since learning about them. I think from a SciShow video, too. Thanks for teaching me some more!

[@danibot3000]

I want more! More details!

[@desperatelyseekingrealnews]

Wow just wow fascinating stuff

[@rickseiden1]

"The orange blobs are just light artifacts." Whew! I thought I was tripping balls, man!

[@Resmungo]

The music is so good.

[@dustman96]

Good stuff

[@miashadows]

Love moss! And i totally didnt know that about lichens! Last week i thought of a great show idea! I would love to see the microbes in the human gut! No poo is required, you could just culture the ones in the probiotics you can buy. Would love to see what im growing inside me!

[@PieterPatrick]

The Ad from Headspace fits perfect with your narration.

[@astralislux305]

Woah! When did you talk about vascular plants?? We need that!

[@nugget...]

amazing❤️

[@mikerphone.]

YESSSSS!! I asked for this so long ago. Am a huge lichen nerd.

[@gtbkts]

Commenting for support.

[@MissBeeBonnet]

This makes me imagine a giant being, looking at Earth under its microscope, initially classifying Rainforests like the Amazon and the Congo Basin as Organisms… only for their species’s technology to later get better, and for another giant to look and realize that there’s loads of *stuff* in there??? And I love it!!!! The different lichens aren’t different *species*, they’re different *biomes*, and that’s so cool!!!!!!!

[@MarcelaMT]

I love this video

[@etherflows3059]

Thx, as Mary Pop said - These are a few of my favourite things

[@HeroEnCo]

can this please be ported to a podcast I need this to fall asleep to

[@royalizetheplantman]

I really love the show. You should check up on utricularia. They are tiny carnivore plants. Id love a episode about Them.

[@dianahernandezmurguia8065]

I read a little bit about Lichens conquering prehistoric land in Lynn Margulis´ book Symbiotic Planet when se mentioned the Hypersea Theory of McMenamin, it sounds poetic :)

[@syntheticperson]

Beautiful

[@MustafaBirsoz]

thnak you

[@trulyinfamous]

Mosses are genuinely my favorite type of plant. They can grow in most places, they're important for the environment, and tardigrades like to live on them. Many can also survive being dehydrated for a long time, coming back when hydrated and continuing on life as usual. What's not to love about it?

[@StarSong936]

@ 1:14 I happen to find mosses and lichens to be fascinating. Sadly I don't know much about either, but I do know that lichens are a symbiosis between an algae and a fungus. I'll keep watching to find out more.

[@1TakoyakiStore]

I was hoping for lichen spores just based on descriptions of them I've read in the past. As someone who grew up in Florida Scrub lands we see lichens growing directly from the sugar sand a lot, including one that looks like the tips were dipped in red paint.

[@rascalw.492]

It's the moss, 🤣🤣🤣🤯. Noooooo? Nice delivery. The narrators on this channel are epic.

[@0therun1t21]

Moss is so nice and soft and beautiful, I love it!

[@chironOwlglass]

boy howdy, those are some sick (in a good way) light artifacts

[@alanhyt79]

+1 for the "boy howdy" LOL Made my day.

[@piteoswaldo]

This new soundtrack is amazing! Where can I find the full songs?

[@alsoaclient]

@1:29 Thank you for directly answering the question posed, instead of beating around the bush! (Pun intended.)

[@jan_kisan]

hell, your videos are poetry

[@mafarmerga]

Lichens live on, and break down, granite rock. Think about that for a moment.

[@flightlesschicken7769]

So do a number of plants

[@mafarmerga]

@@flightlesschicken7769 Lithophytes can grow on accumulated organic material that collects on rocks or in fissures but I am not aware of any true plants that can dissolve rocks to get their nutrients (as lichens can). Happy to learn that I am wrong if you can think of any examples.

[@flightlesschicken7769]

@@mafarmerga The first example that comes to mind (although I did not remember the scientific name, I had to look it up) is _Barbacenia macrantha_ which is a monocot angiosperm. I also believe a number of mosses dissolve rocks to an extent. Also Knot Weed, _Fallopia japonica_ , is supposedly able to grow right through cement, so they are assumably dissolving it as they go through. Although I cannot recall hearing about lichens with the ability to do that, it doesn't surprise me at all. It's always interesting to learn new things, right? :) Edit: fixed italics

[@obduliocerceno4984]

Yes!!! It was great to the little creature ( tardigrade) moving or floating next to the moss!!!!

[@AlexanderRoux]

It feels like I'm listening to Agent Smith's microbiology side hustle And it is filled with splendour!

[@valeriog8780]

Mosses and lichens! I was hoping you’d make a video about them. The next will be "Mosses and Tardigrades".

[@joooooooooooe]

it's tight that you contracted Andrew Huang to do the music. I was listening to all the squishy filter fm and the ending grains and pitch delays and thought "damn this sounds like modular synthesis!". Lo and behold, it's Andrew Huang

[@RikaJogie]

Thank You 🤗 I like this macro/micro world...FANTASTIC it is the basic of life 💚💚💚