I stopped to examine some pixie cup lichens (Caldonia pleurota) while scrambling on a north-facing rocky slope and took some photos.

With yellowish clubs and reddish apothecia, these are probably Cladonia borealis.

The clubs have a warty surface and the tops are cup-like.

The pixie cups emerge through other leaf lichens in the forest duff.

Pixie cups are small and easy to miss.   They often grow in shady spots and the low light makes them more difficult to photograph.  For us, they are a natural miracle of clustered, complex architecture if we just take the time to enjoy them as we explore the forests.