Cladonia cariosa is a species of fruticose lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. The species is characterised by its thick, tongue-shaped basal scales and upright grey-green stalks that lack the cup-like structures found in many related lichens, instead being topped with large chocolate-brown fruiting bodies. It has a cosmopolitan distribution and commonly grows on soil in both calcium-rich and calcium-poor sites across northern North America. The lichen is also known by the common names split-peg lichen and split-peg soldiers.

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