This photograph shows an image of a branch of a Southern Live Oak (Quercus virginiana) covered in epiphytic growth. Epiphytes are organisms, especially other plants, microbes, fungi, or lichens, that grow on the surface of plants. These epiphytes often benefit their host plant by retaining water and attracting pollinators. There are three species of epiphytes in this photo. The small ferns are Resurrection Ferns (Pleopeltis polypodiales). The filamentous grey-green structures are Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoides), a relative of pineapple. Lastly, the wavy pale-green structures are a type of lichen. Lichens are composed of two or more species including a fungus and an algae.
My research explores plant microbiomes, which are composed of a diverse collection of epiphytic microbes. The plant microbiome, like these macroscopic epiphytes, provides a host of benefits to the plant, though we are still beginning to understand the complexity of these dynamics.