Parmelia is a genus of medium to large foliose (leafy) lichens. It has a global distribution, extending from the Arctic to the Antarctic continent but concentrated in temperate regions. There are about 40 species in Parmelia. In recent decades, the once large genus Parmelia has been divided into a number of smaller genera according to thallus morphology and phylogenetic relatedness.
The Parmeliaceae is a large and diverse family of Lecanoromycetes. With over 2700 species in 71 genera, it is the largest family of lichen-forming fungi. The most speciose genera in the family are the well-known groups: Xanthoparmelia, Usnea, Parmotrema, and Hypotrachyna.
Melanohalea is a genus of foliose lichens in the family Parmeliaceae. It contains 30 mostly Northern Hemisphere species that grow on bark or on wood. The genus is characterised by the presence of pseudocyphellae, usually on warts or on the tips of isidia, a non-pored epicortex and a medulla containing depsidones or lacking secondary metabolites. Melanohalea was circumscribed in 2004 as a segregate of the morphologically similar genus Melanelia, which was created in 1978 for certain brown Parmelia species. The methods used to estimate the evolutionary history of Melanohalea suggest that its diversification primarily occurred during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs.
Melanelixia is a genus of foliose lichens in the family Parmeliaceae. It contains 15 Northern Hemisphere species that grow on bark or on wood. The genus is characterized by a pored or fenestrate epicortex, and the production of lecanoric acid as the primary chemical constituent of the medulla. Melanelixia was circumscribed in 2004 as a segregate of the related genus Melanelia.
Flavoparmelia is a genus of foliose lichens in the family Parmeliaceae. Because of their appearance, they are commonly known as greenshield lichens. The widely distributed genus contains 32 species. It was circumscribed by American lichenologist Mason Hale in 1986 to contain 17 former Pseudoparmelia species with broad lobes, usnic acid in the cortex, and isolichenan in the cell walls.
Canoparmelia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Parmeliaceae. The widespread genus contains about 35 species. Canoparmelia, a segregate of the parmelioid lichen genus Pseudoparmelia, was circumscribed by John Elix and Mason Hale in 1986.
Bulbothrix is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Parmeliaceae. This genus is synonymous with Bulbothricella V.Marcano, S.Mohali & A.Morales. Bulbothrix was circumscribed by lichenologist Mason E. Hale in 1974 with Bulbothrix semilunata as the type species.
Punctelia is a genus of foliose lichens belonging to the large family Parmeliaceae. The genus, which contains about 50 species, was segregated from genus Parmelia in 1982. Characteristics that define Punctelia include the presence of hook-like to thread-like conidia, simple rhizines, and point-like pseudocyphellae. It is this last feature that is alluded to in the vernacular names speckled shield lichens or speckleback lichens.
Relicina is a genus of foliose lichens belonging to the large family Parmeliaceae. It contains 59 species.
Xanthoparmelia is a genus of foliose lichens in the family Parmeliaceae. This genus of lichen is commonly found in the United States, South America, southern Africa, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.
Xanthoparmelia pokornyi is a lichen species in the family Parmeliaceae. It contains the depsides gyrophoric acid and stenosporic acid.
Remototrachyna is a genus of foliose lichens in the large family Parmeliaceae. It was separated from the genus Hypotrachyna based on the structure of the excipulum and genetic differences.
Austroparmelina is a genus of foliose lichens in the large family Parmeliaceae. It contains species formerly placed in the genera Parmelina and Canoparmelia. All species of Austroparmelina have an Australasian-South African distribution.
Melanohalea zopheroa is a species of lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. It was first formally described in 1977 by Ted Esslinger as Parmelia zopheroa. A year later, he transferred it to the new genus Melanelia, which he created to contain the brown Parmeliae species. In 2004, after early molecular phylogenetic evidence showed that Melanelia was not monophyletic, Melanohalea was circumscribed by lichenologists Oscar Blanco, Ana Crespo, Pradeep K. Divakar, Esslinger, David L. Hawksworth and H. Thorsten Lumbsch, and M. zopheroa was transferred to it. The lichen has a disjunct distribution, as it is found in South America (Chile) and in New Zealand.
Melanohalea ushuaiensis is a species of lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. It was first formally described in 1917 by Alexander Zahlbruckner as Parmelia ushuaiensis. Ted Esslinger transferred to the new genus Melanelia in 1978, which he circumscribed to contain the brown parmeliae species. In 2004, it was moved to the newly created genus Melanohalea. It is endemic to South America.
Melanohalea subverruculifera is a species of lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. Found in China, it was first formally described as a new species in 1980 as Parmelia subverruculifera. It was transferred to the segregate genus Melanelia in 1991, and then to the genus Melanohalea in 2004.
Xanthoparmelia loxodes is a species of foliose lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. It was first formally described by Finnish botanist William Nylander in 1872, as Parmelia loxodes. In 1978, Ted Esslinger created the genus Neofuscelia, which contained species previously classified in Parmelia subgenus Neofusca; Neofuscelia loxodes was one of many species transferred here. In a molecular phylogenetic study published by Oscar Blanco in 2004, Ana Crespo, John A. Elix, David L. Hawksworth and H. Thorsten Lumbsch, they showed that Neofuscelia did not form a clade distinct from Xanthoparmelia, and they reduced it to synonymy under Xanthoparmelia.
Xanthoparmelia salazinica is a species of lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. Found in South Africa, it was described as a new species in 1989 by American lichenologist Mason Hale. He classified it in Karoowia, a genus that has since been placed in synonymy with Xanthoparmelia following molecular phylogenetic analysis published in 2010.
Xanthoparmelia ahtii is a rock shield lichen that belongs to the family Parmeliaceae. One previous name for this species was Neofuscelia ahtii. The lichen is uncommon and is listed as imperiled by the Nature Conservatory.
