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Belly Button Fungus

Tiny clumps of lichen bring life to the rocks around Igloo Spur in Antarctica. Named Umbilicaria for its belly-button shape, this lichen grows in only a handful of places on the frozen continent, such as this empty sweep of windswept rock. Researchers and communicators from WHOI have been sampling such sights and sounds through the series of Polar Discovery online expeditions. They will take the show on the road to Greenland this summer.
(Photo by Chris Linder)