LICHALP

Rhizocarpon rapax V. Wirth & Poelt

Lichenised.

Substrate:

Altitudinal range: from the subalpine belt (potential vegetation: open, taiga-like forests dominated by Larix decidua and/or Pinus cembra and Rhododendron) to the alpine belt (potential vegetation: treeless Alpine grasslands and tundras, to the lower limit of perennial snow and the equilibrium line of glaciers)

Note: on siliceous rocks near and above treeline, starting the life-cycle on the thalli of different crustose lichens; related to Rh. tinei, but differing in the parasitic growth; probably overlooked and more frequent in the Alps, especially in rainy areas.