Pink fungus on live oak

[t0by]

Greetings everyone,

I've spent the past couple hours digging through the forums and am thrilled I've found a site with such great information. I have quite a few questions and will start with this one.

One of my young live oaks has an odd pinkish fungus(?) growing about 6 feet from the bottom of the tree. It is only in this one location, as far as I can see. The tree, itself, looks great.... at least to my novice eye.

I searched the forums and found another thread discussing pink fungus, but when I googled "Live Oak Fruiting Bodies" I didn't find anything similar.

Would anyone know what this might be and whether or not it is of any concern?

TIA!

 

[BayouTree]

Good Pictures.

I'm not sure exactly what that is, but it appears to be some type of Lichen.
They are harmless to the tree and they come in many colors. I have never seen pink before. They feed on the dead outer bark.

 

[t0by]

Perfect! Thank you. From what I've seen Googling Lichen, that's exactly it.

 

[ATS/TexasTree]

Good pictures, but what about the rest of the tree - is it healthy?

Does this occur elsewhere on the tree?

 

[ClimbinArbor]

if theres no proper name for this yet can we call it the bubble gum moss lichen?? lmfao

 

[ClimbinArbor]

oh and welcome aboard t0by

 

[Chris Francis]

Pink spots on live oak tree

What you are seeing is actually a lichen, a symbiotic relationship between fungi and algae. It is called Christmas wreath lichen (Cryptothecia rubrocincta). It does not hurt the tree.