| Flavoplaca | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Flavoplaca flavocitrina | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
| Order: | Teloschistales |
| Family: | Teloschistaceae |
| Genus: | Flavoplaca Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013) |
| Type species | |
| Flavoplaca citrina (Hoffm.) Arup, Frödén & Søchting (2013) | |
Flavoplaca is a genus of crust-like or scaly lichens in the family Teloschistaceae. It has about 30 species with a mostly Northern Hemisphere distribution. [1]
The genus was circumscribed in 2013 by Ulf Arup, Patrik Frödén and Ulrik Søchting, with Flavoplaca citrina as the type species. The genus formed a well-supported clade in molecular phylogenetics analysis. Flavoplaca species are closely related to Calogaya species that have lobes. There are other genera with roughly similar morphological features as Flavoplaca (examples include Polycauliona , Orientophila , Sirenophila , and Villophora ), but they are genetically different and have different distributions. Arup and colleagues included 26 species in the genus; most were originally named as members of the genera Caloplaca or Lecanora . [2]
Recent molecular studies have continued to refine the taxonomy of the genus. In 2024, three additional species were transferred to Flavoplaca based on phylogenetic analysis: F. ruderum, F. itiana, and F. sol. These transfers helped resolve several taxonomic uncertainties within the group. F. ruderum was found to be closely related to F. communis, F. maritima, and F. havaasii, forming a well-supported clade within the genus. The study also clarified historical confusion surrounding the identities of F. itiana, F. calcitrapa, and Caloplaca dalmatica , demonstrating that some specimens previously identified as C. dalmatica actually represent F. itiana. [3]
Flavoplaca species have a thallus that is either crust-like (crustose) or scaly (squamulose), sometimes with indistinct edges, and sometimes with lobes. They often have apothecia, and these are zeorine , meaning that the proper exciple (the ring-shaped layer surrounding the hymenium) is enclosed in the thalline exciple . Pycnidia can be present or absent; the conidia have a bacilliform to ellipsoid shape. [2]
The morphology of species within the genus can vary significantly. Some species, such as F. ruderum, display a distinctive uneven thallus composed of strongly convex to verruculose or almost globose (spherical) areoles that can sometimes appear almost squamulose. The presence of pruina (a powdery or waxy surface coating) varies among populations and species; for example, Swedish specimens of F. ruderum show less pruinosity than their British counterparts. The apothecia are typically large and zeorine in structure. [3]
Four Flavoplaca species are lichenicolous; that is, they grow on other lichens. These are F. coronata (on saxicolous lichens), F. microthallina (on saxicolous lichens, commonly Hydropunctaria maura ), F. oasis (on saxicolous lichens, particularly Bagliettoa calciseda ), and F. polycarpa (on Bagliettoa ). Only F. polycarpa has a truly lichenicolous mode of life; the others are facultatively lichenicolous, i.e., commonly collected from lichens but also known to grow on non-lichen substrates. [4]
The genus shows distinct ecological preferences, with many species favouring calcareous substrates. Some species are specifically adapted to coastal environments, while others prefer inland habitats. For example, F. ruderum typically grows on soft calcareous walls and mortar, particularly in well-lit locations, while related species like F. communis and F. maritima are largely confined to seashore rocks or coastal areas with high salinity exposure. [3]
Most Flavoplaca species occur in the Northern Hemisphere, and many are found in Europe. [2] As of December 2024 [update] , Species Fungorum accepts 28 species of Flavoplaca: [5]
The Teloschistaceae are a large family of mostly lichen-forming fungi belonging to the class Lecanoromycetes in the division Ascomycota. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, although its members occur predominantly in temperate regions. Most members are lichens that either live on rock or on bark, but about 40 species are lichenicolous – meaning they are non-lichenised fungi that live on other lichens. Many members of the Teloschistaceae are readily identifiable by their vibrant orange to yellow hue, a result of their frequent anthraquinone content. The presence of these anthraquinone pigments, which confer protection from ultraviolet light, enabled this group to expand from shaded forest habitats to harsher environmental conditions of sunny and arid ecosystems during the Late Cretaceous.
Variospora is a genus of crustose lichens, belonging to the family Teloschistaceae.
Gyalolechia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi belonging to the family Teloschistaceae. It contains 18 species of crustose lichens.
Athallia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It was circumscribed in 2013 by Ulf Arup, Patrik Frödén, and Ulrik Søchting, and the type species is Athallia holocarpa. The genus name means "without a thallus".
Calogaya is a genus of lichen-forming fungi belonging to the family Teloschistaceae. It has 19 species. The genus was circumscribed in 2013 by Ulf Arup, Ulrik Søchting, and Patrik Frödén. The generic name Calogaya honours Dr. Ester Gaya, a Spanish botanist from the University of Barcelona.
Xanthocarpia is a genus of mostly crustose lichens in the family Teloschistaceae. It has 12 species with a largely Northern Hemisphere distribution.
Polycauliona is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae.
Pachypeltis is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It comprises six species.
Squamulea is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It has 15 species. The genus was circumscribed in 2013 by Ulf Arup, Ulrik Søchting, and Patrik Frödén, with Squamulea subsoluta assigned as the type species. Five species were included in the original account of the genus. The genus name alludes to the squamulose growth form of most of its species. Squamulea has a worldwide distribution; when the genus was originally created, the centre of distribution was thought to be in southwestern North America.
Dufourea is a genus of mostly foliose lichen species in the subfamily Xanthorioideae of the family Teloschistaceae. Species in the genus are found in the Southern Hemisphere.
Wetmoreana is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It comprises 15 formally described species, one subspecies, and three undescribed species of crustose or squamulose that are predominantly saxicolous (rock-dwelling). The genus is characterized by its distinct lobes, orange zeorine apothecia when present, and the frequent occurrence of asexual propagules such as schizidia, isidia, or soredia. A key diagnostic feature is the presence of calcium oxalate crystals in the thallus medulla of many species.
Sirenophila gintarasii is a species of lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. Found in Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 2009 by lichenologists Sergey Kondratyuk and Ingvar Kärnefelt, as a member of the genus Caloplaca. The type specimen was collected by the authors from the Camel Rock reserve. There it was found growing on coastal rock outcrops, along with the crustose species Sirenophila eos and Dufourea ligulata, some of which had been deformed by the lichenicolous fungus species Arthonia sytnikii and Pyrenidium actinellum. The species epithet honours Tasmanian lichen lichenologist Gintaras Kantvilas. Ulf Arup and colleagues transferred the taxon to the genus Sirenophila in 2013, following a molecular phylogenetics-based restructuring of the family Teloschistaceae. Sirenophila gintarasii occurs in New South Wales and Victoria.
Sirenophila eos is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It was first formally described as a new species in 2007 by Sergey Kondratyuk and Ingvar Kärnefelt, as Caloplaca eos. The type specimen was collected from rhyolite outcrops in New South Wales. Ulf Arup and colleagues transferred the taxon to the newly circumscribed genus Sirenophila in 2013, following a molecular phylogenetics-based restructuring of the Teloschistaceae.
Orientophila is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It has 15 species of mostly saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichens. All Orientophila species occur in Northeast Asia including China, Japan, South Korea, and the Russian Far East.
Flavoplaca arcis is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose to squamulose (scaley) lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. Although widely distributed in Northern, Central, and Western Europe, it is not commonly encountered.
Flavoplaca austrocitrina is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is widely distributed in Europe, and has also been recorded in South America.
Flavoplaca limonia is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It was first formally described as a new species in 1994 by lichenologists Pier Luigi Nimis and Josef Poelt. Ulf Arup and colleagues transferred the taxon to the genus Flavoplaca in 2013, following a molecular phylogenetics-based restructuring of the family Teloschistaceae.
Flavoplaca maritima is a species of crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is found in costal areas of Northern, Western, and Southern Europe. It mostly occurs on rocks, but has also been recorded growing on wood.
Flavoplaca arcisproxima is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is found primarily in the coastal regions of the Crimean Peninsula and the eastern Mediterranean, particularly in Crete, Greece.