A lichen is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship. Lichens are important actors in nutrient cycling and act as producers which many higher trophic feeders feed on, such as reindeer, gastropods, nematodes, mites, and springtails. Lichens have properties different from those of their component organisms. They come in many colors, sizes, and forms and are sometimes plant-like, but are not plants. They may have tiny, leafless branches (fruticose); flat leaf-like structures (foliose); grow crust-like, adhering tightly to a surface (substrate) like a thick coat of paint (crustose); have a powder-like appearance (leprose); or other growth forms.
Cyphellostereum is a genus of basidiolichens. Species produce white, somewhat cup-shaped fruit bodies on a thin film of green on soil which is the thallus. All Cyphellostereum species have nonamyloid spores and tissues, lack clamp connections, and also lack hymenial cystidia.
Dictyonema is a genus of mainly tropical basidiolichens in the family Hygrophoraceae.
Sulzbacheromyces is a genus of basidiolichens in the family Lepidostromataceae. The genus is distinguished from the other genera of Lepidostromataceae by having an entirely crustose thallus and from Multiclavula (Cantharellales) by having a chlorococcoid photobiont. The type species grows on soil in the neotropics.
Dictyonema hernandezii is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Found in montane rainforests of Costa Rica and in Colombia, it was described as new to science in 2011. The specific epithet hernandezii honours Venezuelan lichenologist Jesús Hernández.
Cora aspera is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Found in Central and South America, it was formally described as a new species in 2013 by Karina Wilk, Robert Lücking, and Eduardo Morales. The type specimen was collected in the Siberia region near La Palma at an altitude of 2,582 m (8,471 ft). Here, in a Yungas cloud forest, it grows as an epiphyte on bark. The specific epithet alludes to the roughened texture of the thallus surface, especially under dry conditions. The lichen has been recorded from Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru, and it grows on twigs and branches in montane rainforest and páramo vegetation.
Acantholichen pannarioides is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae, and the type species of genus Acantholichen. The lichen has a bluish-tinged, gelatinous thallus with a surface texture that has a powdery to hairy texture. It is found in montane regions of Central America and northern South America, where it grows on forest litter, bark, on bryophytes, and on other lichens.
Dictyonema barbatum is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is endemic to the Galápagos Islands, where it grows as an epiphyte on the bark of branches and trunks, often on introduced plants such as avocado and guava trees. It was formally described as a new species in 2017 by Manuela Dal-Forno, Frank Bungartz, and Robert Lücking. The type specimen was collected near the southern crater rim of the Sierra Negra, at an altitude of 1,055 m (3,461 ft). Its preferred habitat is open areas with lots of rainfall and light exposure. The lichen forms shelf-like, filamentous brackets comprising individual semicircular lobes up to 8 cm (3 in) wide. The specific epithet barbatum refers to the "beard-like" white hairs on the shelf margins, a characteristic feature of this species. These "hairs" are sheaths of fungal hyphae that lack photobiont filaments.
Dictyonema lawreyi is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Found in the United States, it was formally described as a new species in 2019 by Manuela Dal Forno, Laurel Kaminsky, and Robert Lücking. The type specimen was collected in Ocala National Forest, where it was growing as an epiphyte on a trunk of Magnolia. It is only known to occur here and in two other locations in Florida, all in hardwood forests. The lichen has a crustose and filamentous growth form on a white hypothallus, and thallus surface made of a mat of turquoise, loosely interwoven fibrils forming more or less continuous patches up to 5 cm (2 in) long. The type was collected by lichenologist James D. Lawrey, for whom the species is named, and whose work, according to the authors, "helped to redefine the circumscription of the genus Dictyonema s.str."
Multiclavula ichthyiformis is a species of terricolous (ground-dwelling) basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Found in Costa Rica, it was formally described as a new species in 2007 by Matthew Nelsen, Robert Lücking, Loengrin Umaña, Marie Trest, and Susan Will-Wolf. The type collection was collected in the Macizo de la Muerte section of Tapantí National Park at an elevation of 2,700 m (8,900 ft). Here, in a disturbed high-altitude peat bog in a rainforest, it was found growing on the ground along a brook and a road bank.
Lichenomphalia hudsoniana is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is widely distributed in alpine and arctic regions of the world, where it grows on moist soil amongst moss.
Cyphellostereum bicolor is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Found in Mauritius, it was formally described as a new species by lichenologists Robert Lücking and Einar Timdal. The type specimen was collected from the Bambou Mountains at an elevation of 250–300 m (820–980 ft), where it was found growing on tree bark. The species epithet bicolor refers to the notable visual contrast between the vivid blue-green cyanobacterial filaments and the white hyphal patches that give rise to the hymenophore.
Dictyonema album is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is found in Mauritius, where it grows as an epiphyte on shrubs.
Dictyonema tricolor is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is found in Tanzania, where it grows as an epiphyte on trees. The lichen was formally described as a new species by lichenologists Robert Lücking and Einar Timdal. The type specimen was collected by Norwegian Hildur Krog from a low montane rainforest in Lulandu Forest, at an elevation of 2,000 m (6,600 ft). The species epithet refers to the three-colours displayed where the regularly ascending tufts of blue-green cyanobacterial fibrils meet the brown or white colour in the apical part of the tufts.
Dictyonema ramificans is a basidiolichen species in the family Hygrophoraceae. Discovered in 2010 in the Galapagos Islands, it was formally described as a new species in 2017 by lichenologists Manuela Dal-Forno, Alba Yanez-Ayabaca, and Robert Lücking. Its species epithet is derived from the branching pattern of the fibrils that form a net-like structure, giving it an arachnoid (cobweb-like) appearance. This species has only been found in the humid zone of Santa Cruz Island, growing exclusively on bryophytes. While it is similar to other Dictyonema species, it differs in its unique fibril branching pattern and erect arachnoid structure.
Dictyonema aeruginosulum is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Characteristics of the lichen include its distinctive finger-like projections and blue-green hue. It is distinguishable from its closest relatives by its unique morphology and the absence of clamp connections in its structure. Dictyonema aeruginosulum is an epiphyte, forming thick mats on tree trunks within rainforest regions. The species was first identified in Costa Rica's Tenorio Volcano National Park, and it has only been recorded from this location.
Dictyonema krogiae is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is found in Kenya, where it grows as an epiphyte on trees. It is often found in association with other lichens, such as Parmotrema, and bryophytes, such as Frullania. A main characteristic that distinguishes it from other closely related species is its clearly defined internal layers, including its contrasting dense photobiont layer and a loose lower cortex.
Dictyonema metallicum is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is found in the montane rainforests of Ecuador. Characterised by its metallic shimmer, it is an epiphytic lichen that spans large areas on host tree trunks and frequently extends to adjacent bryophytes. Its unique visual texture is created by the loosely interwoven dark blue fibrils of the thallus, a thin, compressed filamentous layer, accentuated by a silver prothallus.
Dictyonema obscuratum is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Originally discovered in Brazil and later recorded in Bolivia and Colombia, its cryptic, olive-green thallus sets it apart from similar species like Dictyonema phyllophilum and D. schenckianum.
Placolecis kunmingensis is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Catillariaceae. It is found in Yunnan, China. The lichen is characterised by a thallus that is areolate to squamulose in its centre, forming irregular patches or clumps 10–50 mm wide, as well as its ellipsoid or spherical ascospores with slightly thickened wall.
