Jocatoa

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Jocatoa
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Ascomycota
Class: Lecanoromycetes
Order: Graphidales
Family: Graphidaceae
Genus: Jocatoa
R.Miranda (2020)
Species:
J. agminalis
Binomial name
Jocatoa agminalis
(Nyl.) Lücking, Herrera-Camp. & R.Miranda (2020)
Synonyms [1]
  • Graphina agminalis(Nyl.) Zahlbr. (1923)
  • Graphis agminalisNyl. (1867)

Jocatoa is a fungal genus in the family Graphidaceae. [2] It contains the single species Jocatoa agminalis, a corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen that can be found in dry forests and semi-arid regions throughout Colombia, Mexico, and the United States. [3] The genus is characterized by its simple, thin paraphysis tips and the absence of an epithecium . Named in honor of the late Professor José Castillo Tovar for his contributions to Mexican mycology, Jocatoa is distinguishable from other superficially similar genera such as Diorygma and Glyphis based on its distinctive features, chemical composition, and molecular data. [3]

Contents

Taxonomy

Jocatoa was circumscribed by Mexican lichenologist Ricardo Miranda-González in 2020. The genus is classified in the family Graphidaceae, subfamily Graphidoideae, and tribe Graphideae. The genus Jocatoa belongs to the same tribe, Graphideae, as Sarcographa and Glyphis but is not closely related to them. It differs from the closely related genus Diorygma by having simple, thin paraphysis tips that do not form an epithecium . [3] Jocatoa agminalis was originally described as a species of Graphis by William Nylander in 1867. [4] The genus is named in honor of the late Professor José Castillo Tovar (1935–2012) for his contributions to the education of Mexican mycologists, and for introducing the genus author to lichens. [3]

Description

The genus Jocatoa is characterized by an ecorticate thallus, muriform spores that exhibit a strong violet color when treated with iodine, and a chemistry belonging to the stictic acid complex. This monospecific genus closely resembles species of Diorygma in terms of its ecorticate thallus, spore type, and chemistry. However, it differs by having simple, thin paraphysis tips that do not form an epithecium, unlike the reticulately branched, anastomosed, and thickened paraphysis tips in Diorygma that form a clear epithecium. [3]

Jocatoa agminalis, the single species within the genus, is distinguished by its crustose, corticolous, epiperidermal, and ecorticate thallus, which is light yellowish-brown to olive-green in color. The photobiont is trentepohlioid , forming a continuous layer surrounded by small crystals. The ascocarps are abundant and can be lirelliform to rounded, erumpent , straight to curved, and unbranched when young. They can also form white to cream-colored pseudostromata in groups. The species has hyaline, strongly muriform, ellipsoid ascospores, with inner cells larger than peripheral cells, measuring 110–217  μm by 45–85 μm. Jocatoa agminalis features a chemistry with hypostictic, stictic, cryptostictic, and constictic acids, as well as three unknown substances that react with UV light. [3]

Habitat and distribution

Jocatoa agminalis is primarily found in mature tropical dry forests, such as those in the Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve in Mexico. It has also been recorded in Colombia's Magdalena River Valley, Brownsville, Texas, Louisiana, and Tamaulipas, Mexico. The species is generally corticolous, growing on the bark of trees like Apoplanesia paniculata , Cordia alliodora , Thouinia paucidentata , and Amphipterygium adstringens . [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graphidaceae</span> Family of fungi

The Graphidaceae are a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Graphidales. The family contains nearly a hundred genera and more than 2000 species. Although the family has a cosmopolitan distribution, most Graphidaceae species occur in tropical regions, and typically grow on bark.

Gymnographopsis is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Redonographaceae.

<i>Acanthothecis</i> Genus of lichen

Acanthothecis is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Graphidaceae. The genus was circumscribed by Frederick Edward Clements in 1909.

<i>Nadvornikia</i> Genus of lichen-forming fungi

Nadvornikia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Graphidaceae. Species in the genus are corticolous (bark-dwelling) and crustose.

<i>Cryptothecia</i> Genus of lichens

Cryptothecia is a genus of white to greenish crustose lichens that grow on bark, wood, or leaves. in tropical or subtropical areas worldwide. It has a conspicuous prothallus that develops around its periphery which can be bright red in some species, hence the common name wreath lichen. The main vegetative body (thallus) lacks a cortex (ecorticate and is often immersed in the substrate or byssoid. The medulla is white, well defined, and often peppered with calcium oxalate crystals. Ascomata are not well defined, being cushions of soft white mycelium immersed in the medullary tissue, hence the name from the Greek krypto = "to conceal" and theke = "a container or sheath". There are about 45 described species in the genus according to one source, and 75 species according to another. The genus is in the family Arthoniaceae. It contains Trentepohlia, a green alga, as its photobiont partner.

Diorygma microsporum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Graphidaceae. It was described as new to science in 2011. It has a neotropical distribution, and has been collected in Florida, Colombia, Brazil, and India. Notable for its small ascospores, this lichen thrives in undisturbed rainforests and serves as an indicator of forest health.

Diorygma sticticum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) script lichen in the family Graphidaceae. It was described as new to science in 2011. It is found in lowland rainforests in Thailand, and in southwestern India.

Leucodecton coppinsii is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Graphidaceae. It is found in lowland forests of Sarawak, Malaysia.

Carbacanthographis megalospora is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Graphidaceae. Found in Brazil, it was formally described as a new species in 2022 by Shirley Cunha Feuerstein and Robert Lücking. The type specimen was collected by the first author from the Augusto Ruschi Biological Reserve at an altitude of 800 m (2,600 ft). The lichen has a whitish grey thallus with a thin cortex and an underlying black prothallus. Its asci contain a single ascospore. These spores are hyaline, and typically measure 235–255 by 30–40 μm. The specific epithet alludes to the large spores, the largest known in genus Carbacanthographis. C. megalospora contains stictic acid, cryptostictic acid, and constictic acid, which are lichen products that can be detected using thin-layer chromatography.

Vigneronia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Roccellaceae. It has five species. The genus was circumscribed in 2014 by Damien Ernst, with Vigneronia spieri assigned as the type species. This species, originally described as Schismatomma spieri from collections made in the Galápagos Islands, has since been recorded from mainland Ecuador and the Antilles (Curaçao). The genus is named after Ernst's wife, Nathalie Vigneron, who accompanied him on collecting trips.

Amazonotrema is a monotypic genus of lichenised fungi in the family Graphidaceae. It was circumscribed in 2009 by Klaus Kalb and Robert Lücking for the species Amazonotrema nigrum. The type specimen of A. nigrum was collected from virgin rainforest along the Rio Negro in the Brazilian state of Amazonas.

Cryptoschizotrema is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Graphidaceae. It has two species. The genus was circumscribed in 2019 by lichenologists André Aptroot, Robert Lücking, and Marcela Cáceres. The genus name alludes to the similarity in anatomy with Schizotrema species. This resemblance is due to the partially carbonized, concentrically layered, and fissured excipulum, which gives the impression that the Schizotrema-like excipulum is concealed beneath a protective layer. The type species was originally described by William Nylander in 1867, as a species of Thelotrema.

Fissurina simplex is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Graphidaceae. Found in India, it was formally described as a new species in 2012 by Bharati Sharma, Pradnya Khadilkar, and Urmila Makhija. The type specimen was collected from an evergreen forest in Silent Valley National Park (Kerala); it has also been recorded from a humid deciduous forest in Karnataka. The lichen has a brown, glossy, and cracked thallus that is delimited by a black hypothalloidal region at its periphery. The ascomata are lirellate, 0.5–1.5 mm long, simple, straight, and the same colour as the thallus. They are immersed to slightly raised, arising as a swelling that then cracks and gapes, and have a terminally acute structure of subcontexta-type. The ascospores are hyaline, muriform, and measure 70–78 by 20–25 μm with a thin halo. Fissurina simplex contains two lichen products: stictic acid and hypostictic acid.

Redonographa is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the monogeneric family Redonographaceae. It has five species.

Austrotrema is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Graphidaceae. It is primarily found in the Australian-Southeast Asian region. The genus is characterized by small, pore-like apothecia with a double margin, faintly amyloid ascospores, and stictic acid chemistry. Austrotrema species grow on tree bark and have a continuous thallus with a cortex that is prosoplectenchymatous–featuring densely packed, filamentous fungal hyphae that run parallel to the surface of the lichen, creating a compact and firm texture. The genus is closely related to Thelotrema and Leucodecton, but can be distinguished from them based on molecular phylogenetic data, specific morphological traits, and its secondary chemistry. Currently, Austrotrema comprises three species.

Asteristion is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Graphidaceae. It has seven species. Previously considered a synonym of either Phaeotrema or Thelotrema, molecular evidence led to its resurrection as a distinct genus. Asteristion lichens are corticolous (bark-dwelling), featuring a continuous thallus with a loose to hardened cortex and a photobiont layer containing calcium oxalate crystals. The ascomata, or fruiting bodies, are characterized by their large, often chroodiscoid appearance and the presence of distinct periphysoids. The secondary chemistry of these lichens includes major concentrations of stictic acid and minor to trace amounts of associated substances.

Clandestinotrema portoricense is a rare species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Graphidaceae. Found in Puerto Rico, it was described as a new species in 2014. It is characterised by its white, slightly shiny thallus that can span several centimetres in diameter, and its rounded ascomata that are immersed in the thallus. Unlike most of its genus counterparts, C. portoricense possesses septated (partitioned) spores and a carbonised (blackened) excipulum and columella, effectively distinguishing it from similar species.

<i>Fissurina alligatorensis</i> Species of lichen

Fissurina alligatorensis is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Graphidaceae. Characteristics of the lichen include its lack of secondary compounds and an ecorticate thallus. Its habitat is centred around the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina, USA, and it has a preference for soft-barked trees. While it can easily be confused with other Fissurina species, there are specific characters that distinguish it, such as its violet ascospores and its lirellate fruiting bodies.

Glyphis frischiana is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) script lichen in the family Graphidaceae. It is distinguished by its large ascospores, single-spored asci, and the presence of stictic acid as a major metabolite. Found on the trunk of Eucalyptus trees in Cameroon, it is similar in appearance to Glyphis atrofusca but can be distinguished by these key characteristics.

Phlyctis subhimalayensis is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Phlyctidaceae. It is found in certain high-elevations regions of the Himalayas and Southwestern China.

References

  1. ↑ "Synonymy. Current Name: Jocatoa agminalis (Nyl.) Lücking, Herrera-Camp. & R. Miranda, in Miranda-González, Lücking, Barcenas-Peña & Herrera-Campos, Bryologist 123(2): 138 (2020)". Species Fungorum . Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  2. ↑ "Jocatoa". Catalogue of Life . Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Miranda-González, Ricardo; Lücking, Robert; Barcenas-Peña, Alejandrina; Ángeles Herrera-Campos, María de los (2020). "The new genus Jocatoa (Lecanoromycetes: Graphidaceae) and new insights into subfamily Redonographoideae". The Bryologist. 123 (2): 127–143. doi:10.1639/0007-2745-123.2.127. S2CID   215812045.
  4. ↑ Nylander, W. (1867). "Prodromus Florae Nova-Granatensis. Lichenes additamentum". Annales des Sciences Naturelles Botanique. 5 (in Latin). 7: 301–354 [334].
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