Sexy Pavement Lichen

About

Sexy Pavement Lichen is the common name for Xanthoparmelia scabrosa a lichen in New Zealand. The common name was given by Dr. Allison Knight who compared some of the lichen's properties to viagra in 2009. In August 2019, the name spread on Twitter due to an article published about the dangers of licking sexy pavement lichen for its viagra like qualities.

Origin

On November 18th, 2009, Dr. Allison Knight spoke during a Botanical Society of Otago^[1] event called "Lichens Illustrated" in which she called Xanthoparmelia scabrosa "sexy foot path lichen" due to its similar properties to Viagra. On August 14th, 2019, Newsroom New Zealand published an article titled, "Don't lick sexy pavement lichen – here's why" which was then shared on Twitter and Reddit. The article warned those who plan to lick pavement lichen for positive libido effects of its toxic properties like lead.

Spread

On August 14th, 2019, Twitter user @tdaviescolley^[3] applauded the common name used for Xanthoparmelia scabrosa (shown below, left). The next day, Twitter users began connecting sexy pavement lichen to other "forbidden foods. " For example @dctrjack,^[5] mention the sarcophagus juice (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References