| Cladonia amaurocraea | |
|---|---|
 | |
| in Wells Gary region, British Columbia | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
| Order: | Lecanorales |
| Family: | Cladoniaceae |
| Genus: | Cladonia |
| Species: | C. amaurocraea |
| Binomial name | |
| Cladonia amaurocraea | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
| |
Cladonia amaurocraea, commonly known as the quill lichen or the quill cup lichen, [2] is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the Cladoniaceae family.
The lichen was first described scientifically as Capitularia amaurocraea in 1810. It was transferred to the genus Cladonia in 1887. [3] It is commonly known as quill lichen. [4]
The thallus of Cladonia amaurocraea comprises tall (15–100 mm high) and slender podetia that are irregularly or dichotomously branched. These podetia have a smooth, yellowish-green surface that is often mottled with patches of green and white. They either form a pointy tip, or a narrow cup that is either closed or has a narrow opening. The cortex contains usnic acid, while the medulla has barbatic acid. [4]
Cladonia amaurocraea is found in boreal forests, where it typically grows on talus deposits between boulders and on rocky ground. In North America, it is widespread throughout Canada and Alaska. [4]
Cladonia is a genus of moss-like lichens in the family Cladoniaceae. They are the primary food source for reindeer/caribou. Cladonia species are of economic importance to reindeer-herders, such as the Sami in Scandinavia or the Nenets in Russia. Antibiotic compounds are extracted from some species to create antibiotic cream. The light green species Cladonia stellaris is used in flower decorations.
Cladonia furcata or the many-forked cup lichen is a species cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It has an intermediate to tolerant air pollution sensitivity. Extracts of this species have been shown to kill leukemia cells in vitro, and may have possible value in the treatment of cancer.
Cladonia stellaris or the star-tipped cup lichen is an ecologically important species of cup lichen that forms continuous mats over large areas of the ground in boreal and arctic regions around the circumpolar north. The species is a preferred food source of reindeer and caribou during the winter months, and it has an important role in regulating nutrient cycling and soil microbiological communities. Like many other lichens, Cladonia stellaris is used by humans directly for its chemical properties, as many of the secondary metabolites are antimicrobial, but it also has the unique distinction of being harvested and sold as 'fake trees' for model train displays. It is also used as a sound absorber in interior design. The fungal portion of Cladonia stellaris, known as a mycobiont, protects the lichen from lichenivores, superfluous solar radiation, and other kinds of stressors in their ecosystem.
Cladonia mongkolsukii is a species of fruticose lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. Described as new to science in 2011, it is found in lower-elevation montane scrub forests of northeast Thailand and in Sri Lanka. The specific epithet honors Pachara Mongolsuk, a Thai lichenologist.
Lichens are symbiotic organisms made up of multiple species: a fungus, one or more photobionts and sometimes a yeast. They are regularly grouped by their external appearance – a characteristic known as their growth form. This form, which is based on the appearance of vegetative part of the lichen, varies depending on the species and the environmental conditions it faces. Those who study lichens (lichenologists) have described a dozen of these forms: areolate, byssoid, calicioid, cladoniform, crustose, filamentous, foliose, fruticose, gelatinous, leprose, placoidioid and squamulose. Traditionally, crustose (flat), foliose (leafy) and fruticose (shrubby) are considered to be the three main forms. In addition to these more formalised, traditional growth types, there are a handful of informal types named for their resemblance to the lichens of specific genera. These include alectorioid, catapyrenioid, cetrarioid, hypogymnioid, parmelioid and usneoid.
A podetium is the upright secondary thallus in Cladonia lichens. It is a hollow stalk extending from the primary thallus. Podetia can be pointed stalks, club like, cupped, or branched in shape and may or may not contain the ascocarp, the fruiting body, of the lichen. It is not considered part of the primary thallus as it is a fruiting structure for reproduction.
Cladonia parasitica, commonly known as the fence-rail cladonia, fence-rail cup lichen or parasite club lichen, is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described by Hoffmann in 1784 under the name Lichen parasiticus, until he reclassified it under the genus Cladonia in 1795.
Cladonia borealis, commonly known as the boreal cup lichen, is a species of lichen in the genus Cladonia.
Cladonia wainioi or the Wainio's cup lichen is a species of cup lichen found in boreal and arctic regions of the Russian Far East and northern North America.
Cladonia sobolescens, commonly known as the peg lichen, is a species of fruticose lichen. It is found in temperate eastern North America and East Asia.
Cladonia arbuscula, also referred to as shrubby cup lichen or green reindeer lichen, is a species of cup lichen in the Cladoniaceae family.
Cladonia caespiticia is a widespread and common species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was originally named Baeomyces caespiticius by German mycologist Christiaan Hendrik Persoon in 1794. Heinrich Gustav Flörke transferred it to the genus Cladonia in 1827. In North America, it is commonly known as the stubby-stalked Cladonia.
Cladonia coniocraea, commonly known as the common powderhorn or the powderhorn cup lichen, is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described by Heinrich Gustav Flörke in 1821 under the name Cenomyce coniocraea, until Kurt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel reclassified it under the genus Cladonia in 1827.
Cladonia digitata, commonly known as the finger cup lichen, is a cup lichen species in the family Cladoniaceae.
Cladonia cornuta or the bighorn cup lichen is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described as a new species by Swedish lichenologist Carl Linnaeus in his seminal 1753 work Species Plantarum. German biologist Georg Franz Hoffmann transferred it to the genus Cladonia in 1791. The lichen has a distribution that is circumpolar, boreal, and arctic. It has also been recorded from the Southern Hemisphere.
Cladonia subulata is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described as a new species by Swedish taxonomist Carl Linnaeus in 1753. It was transferred to the genus Cladonia by Friedrich Heinrich Wiggers in 1780. In North America, the lichen is colloquially known as the antlered powderhorn or antlered cup lichen.
Cladonia uncialis is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described as a new species by Swedish taxonomist Carl Linnaeus in 1753. It was transferred to the genus Cladonia by Friedrich Heinrich Wiggers in 1780. In North America, the lichen is colloquially known as the thorn Cladonia or the thorn cup lichen.
Cladonia cervicornis is a species of cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described by Swedish lichenologist Erik Acharius in 1799 as Lichen cervicornis. Julius von Flotow transferred it to the genus Cladonia in 1849. In North America, it is colloquially known as the ladder lichen or elk's-horn cup lichen.
Cladonia boryi, also commonly known as fishnet cladonia or fishnet lichen, is a species of lichen. It is distinctive in the genus Cladonia because the stalks (podetia) are very wide, seemingly hollow, and often perforated, hence the colloquial name - the fishnet lichen. It is also known as Bory's cup lichen.
Cladonia rei, commonly known as the wand lichen, is a species of ground-dwelling, fruticose lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It is a widely distributed species, having been reported from Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, and North America. It is identified by its slightly dirty-colored, rough-surfaced, slender podetia that grow up to 9 cm (3.5 in) tall. Diagnostic characters of the lichen include the continuously sorediate, green-and-brown-mottled, podetia that taper upward to a point, while chemically, it contains homosekikaic and sekikaic acids. Its reduced capacity to bioaccumulate toxic heavy metals from its surroundings, as well as its ability to switch photobiont partners, allows the lichen to colonize and survive highly polluted habitats. There are several other Cladonia species that are somewhat similar in appearance, but can be distinguished either by subtle differences in morphology, or by the secondary chemicals they contain.
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