Echinoplaca pernambucensis

Last updated

Echinoplaca pernambucensis
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Ascomycota
Class: Lecanoromycetes
Order: Graphidales
Family: Gomphillaceae
Genus: Echinoplaca
Species:
E. pernambucensis
Binomial name
Echinoplaca pernambucensis
Øvstedal & Elix (2011)

Echinoplaca pernambucensis is a species of crustose lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. [1] It was described as new to science in 2011. It is found in the Atlantic Forest in Pernambuco, Brazil. [2] This lichen is similar in appearance to Echinoplaca verrucifera , but lacks setae and contains gyrophoric, lecanoric, and subgyrophoric acids.

Contents

Taxonomy

Echinoplaca pernambucensis was first described by lichenologists Dag Øvstedal and John Elix in 2010, following the discovery of the type specimen in Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. The specific epithet pernambucensis is derived from the location where the type specimen was found. The genus Echinoplaca is part of the Gomphillaceae and its members are typically found growing on leaves, with only a few species known to grow on bark. The authors acknowledge, however, that without DNA analysis for confirmation, that their generic placement is tentative, and that the genera Gyalideopsis and Calenia were also reasonable possibilities. [2]

Description

The Echinoplaca pernambucensis lichen is crustose, featuring a whitish-green basal crust that is 2–3 cm wide and 100–115  μm thick. The crust is corticate in some areas, while it appears cracked and granular in others. This lichen hosts a species of Chlorococcaceae as its photobiont , with cells that measure 4–6 μm wide. It also contains abundant calcium oxalate crystals. [2]

The upper surface of the lichen is covered with numerous conical areolae , which are pinkish-white, up to 0.2 mm high and wide, and lack algae. The areolae have a more compact texture than the basal crust and feature a central hyphophore . The hyphophores are whitish, up to 0.4 mm long, mostly curved, and 30–40 μm wide, with a slightly broader apex. No diahyphae , setae, or apothecia have been observed in this species. [2]

The secondary chemistry of Echinoplaca pernambucensis includes gyrophoric acid as a major component, and both lecanoric acid and subgyrophoric acid as minor components. [2]

Habitat and distribution

Echinoplaca pernambucensis is found growing on the bark of tree species in the Atlantic Forest in Pernambuco, Brazil. The lichen typically grows about 1.5 m (4.9 ft) above the ground. [2]

Similar species

The genus Echinoplaca is characterised by flush apothecia with the thallus, and often the presence of hyphophores and setae. While the absence of apothecia makes the generic placement of this species tentative, it shares several characteristics with other Echinoplaca species, such as the presence of hyphophores, calcium oxalate crystals, and the type of photobiont. Other genera in the family Gomphillaceae, such as Gyalideopsis and Calenia , also share some similarities with Echinoplaca pernambucensis, but differences in their respective features set them apart from this species. [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>Acarospora</i> Genus of fungi

Acarospora is a genus of mostly lichen-forming fungi in the family Acarosporaceae. Most species in the genus are crustose lichens that grow on rocks in open and arid places all over the world. They may look like a cobblestone road or cracked up old paint, and are commonly called cobblestone lichens or cracked lichens. They usually grow on rock, but some grow on soil (terricolous) or on other lichens. Some species in the genus are fungi that live as parasites on other lichens. Acarospora is a widely distributed genus, with about 128 species according to a 2008 estimate.

Echinoplaca is a genus of lichens in the family Gomphillaceae.

<i>Cryptothecia rubrocincta</i> Species of fungus

Cryptothecia rubrocincta is a species of lichen in the fungal family Arthoniaceae. The species is distributed in subtropical and tropical locations throughout the southeastern United States, as well as Central and South America, and has been collected infrequently in a few locales in Africa. The body of the lichen forms continuous, circular crust-like patches on dead wood, readily recognizable by the prominent red pigment. The older, central region is covered with red, spherical to cylindrical granules. Moving outwards from the center, zones of color may be distinguished, the first gray-green, the second white, and finally a bright red cottony rim. The red and green colors of this unmistakable woodland lichen give the appearance of a Christmas wreath, suggestive of its common North American name, the Christmas (wreath) lichen. The red pigment, called chiodectonic acid, is one of several chemicals the lichen produces to help tolerate inhospitable growing conditions.

Aderkomyces thailandicus is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. Found in the lower montane rainforests of Thailand, it was described as new to science in 2011.

Sagenidiopsis isidiata is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) byssoid lichen in the family Arthoniaceae. Found in tropical montane rainforests throughout Central America, South America, and the Antilles, it was described as new to science in 2011. The lichen is characterised by its cream-coloured to greyish thallus and numerous pseudoisidia, which are small, cylindrical outgrowths on its surface.

Neobrownliella brownlieae is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is widely distributed in Australia.

Phlyctis psoromica is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Phlyctidaceae. Native to New South Wales, Australia, it was described as new to science in 2011. This lichen is characterised by its whitish to pale blue-grey crustose thallus and distinctive secondary chemistry.

Ochrolechia cooperi is a species of crustose lichen in the family Ochrolechiaceae. Occurring only in southern Alaska, it was formally described as a new species in 2020 by lichenologist Toby Spribille. The type specimen was collected in the Hoonah-Angoon Census Area of Glacier Bay National Park, northeast of Gustavus. Here the lichen was found in muskeg growing on a conifer log that still had its bark. The specific epithet honors American ecologist William Skinner Cooper, "whose studies on plant succession in Glacier Bay and subsequent political lobbying efforts were influential in the establishment of Glacier Bay as a National Monument in 1925".

Remototrachyna sipmaniana is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), foliose lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. It is only known to occur in Bolivia, where it grows on boulders in Yungas mountain cloud forests.

Acarospora pseudofuscata is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Acarosporaceae. It occurs on a few islands in the Aegean Sea and in Turkey.

Tephromela lignicola is a species of lignicolous (wood-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Tephromelataceae. It is found in the Falkland Islands, where it grows on fenceposts and similar timber.

Gyalectidium yahriae is an uncommon species of crustose lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. It occurs in Florida and Papua New Guinea, recorded growing on bark in the former location and on both bark and on wood in the latter.

Gyalectidium floridense is a species of foliicolous (leaf-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. It is found in the southeastern United States, where it grows on the leaves of Citrus and palmetto.

Echinoplaca basalis is a species of foliicolous (leaf-dwelling) lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. It is found in the Southeastern United States.

Tricharia duotela is a species of foliicolous (leaf-dwelling) lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. It is characterized by its pale greenish-grey to white color, small ascospores, and preference for open habitats. Found in South Florida, it can be found on the leaves of saw palmetto in pine barrens. This lichen is similar to other species in the genus Tricharia, but it is differentiated by its smaller ascospores and unique diahyphae.

Enterographa rotundata is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Roccellaceae. This species was discovered in Brazil, growing on the smooth bark of trees in the Brazilian Caatinga forest. It has round apothecia, a feature that sets it apart from most of its kind.

Gyalideopsis aptrootii is a species of corticolous lichen in the family Gomphillaceae. Found in southern Brazil, it was described as a new species in 2018. Defining features of this lichen include the unique crescent-shaped structure of its hyphophores, the single-spored asci, and the relatively small size of the ascospores.

Lecanactis borbonica is a rare species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), lichen in the family Roccellaceae. Found exclusively in Réunion, it forms a crustose thallus and is characterised by its rounded ascomata and the presence of specific chemical compounds.

Nyungwea pycnidiata is a rare species of lichen in the family Opegraphaceae. Found in the North Region of Brazil, it was described as a new species in 2017. It is unique for its adaptation to living on termite nests.

Ochrolechia insularis is a rare species of crustose lichen in the family Ochrolechiaceae. Found only on Kangaroo Island in South Australia, it forms an intricate crust on granite rocks near the sea, providing a habitat for a diverse range of species.

References

  1. "Echinoplaca pernambucensis Øvstedal & Elix". Catalogue of Life . Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Lumbsch, H. T.; Ahti, T.; Altermann, S.; De Paz, G. A.; Aptroot, A.; Arup, U.; et al. (2011). "One hundred new species of lichenized fungi: a signature of undiscovered global diversity". Phytotaxa. 18 (1): 1–127. doi: 10.11646/phytotaxa.18.1.1 .