Sphaerophorus fragilis forms compact thalli, composed of branches that are easily detached. Typically, it grows on exposed siliceous rocks and boulders in screes, glacial cirques and above the upper treeline. Rarely, it is also found on soil among bryophytes. The species prefers rainfall-rich areas. It is distributed in arctic-alpine areas all over the Northern Hemisphere. In the Czech Republic, the lichen was known from the Šumava Mts and Sudeten Mountains, and a single record comes from the sandstone rocks near Pravčická brána (Anders 1928). In the last decades, it was found in the Šumava Mts, Králický Snežník Mts, Hrubý Jeseník Mts and also Krkonoše Mts (Halda et al. 2016).
Literature: Liška J., Palice Z. & Dětinský R. (1998): Změny v rozšíření vzácných a ohrožených lišejníků v České republice I. – Příroda, Praha, 12: 131–144. Anders J. (1928): Die Laub- und Strauchflechten Mitteleuropas. – 217 p., Jena. Halda J., Kučera J. & Koval Š. (2016): Atlas krkonošských mechorostů, lišejníků a hub 1 – mechorosty a lišejníky. – Vrchlabí: Správa KRNAP.
taxonomic classification:Ascomycota → Lecanoromycetes → Lecanorales → Sphaerophoraceae → Sphaerophorus
Red List (Liška & Palice 2010):CR – critically endangered
Red List (Malíček 2023):C1 – critically endangered
Occurrence in the Czech Republic
All records: 14, confirmed 12. One click on a selected square displays particular record(s), including their source(s).