What are those yellow spots on the trunk of the mangroves?

Yellow spots of lichens on mangroves trees - Photo: Still Gravity.
The yellow "paintings" on the mangroves - License our images here.

What are those yellow spots on the bark of red mangroves? Lichens. Red mangroves are the perfect home for them. And what are lichens? A mix of fungus and blue-green algae - the first one is a parasite of the second one. Science doesn't know well the relation between them and the coastal tree. 

There are many species of lichen in the planet. The count goes for over 18,000. What a big family.

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