Cladonia rangiformis Hoffm. 

    Primary thallus made of small basal squamules, rare, vanishing soon and sometimes absent, upper surface grey-greenish, whitish below. Podetia forming tufts up to 5-7 cm tall, often isolate, hemispherical, hedgehog-like, densely branched with acute angles, terminal ramification mainly bifid, sometimes trifid, pointed apices, turning brown to purplish-brown, surface typically marbled with grey-green to green spots on pale grey-cream background (snake skin or giraffe skin like (particularly visible in dry weather)), possibly squamulose. Apothecia very rare, small like pin's head, corymbose at branchlet apices, brown. Photobiont : trebouxioide, sweet taste. 3 chemoforms:

Chemo I: K+ yellow, KC-, C-, Pd-, UV-, K/UV+ yellow. Atranorine, rangiformic and norrangiformic acid.

Chemo II: K+ yellow, KC-, C-, Pd+ red, UV-, K/UV+ yellow. Atranorine, rangiformic and norrangiformic acid, fumarprotocetraric acid.

Chemo III: K+ yellow, KC-, C-, Pd+ yellow, UV-, K/UV+ yellow. Atranorin, rangiformic acid, psoromic acid.

_ Specimen exposed to sun turning brown may not be confused with Cladonia furcata, P+ red, darker, less marbled and  bitter and whose branches are less branched and for the small bush forms to Cladonia uncialis subsp. uncialis whose axils are open.

N.B. Probably collective species from which it is possible to separate several taxa: chemoforms, ecoforms, variety,.. We have isolated the dense bush form coming on very windy and very sunny mineral soils at the foot of the rocks by the sea:

_ Cladonia rangiformis forme des landes aérohalines. Frequent in "hedgehog-like" at the top of cliffs by the sea.

_ Cladonia rangiformis forme de souffrance.. A form of suffering that turns brown in old age, the podetions of which are covered with small whitish growths, coming in very exposed places and receiving sea spray and splashes of seawater.

_ Cladonia rangiformis morpho pungens variety (or single form) more thermophilic and less coastal whose podetia often have small foliaceous scales and whose ends are slender and more tapering.