| Marcelaria benguelensis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Dothideomycetes |
| Order: | Trypetheliales |
| Family: | Trypetheliaceae |
| Genus: | Marcelaria |
| Species: | M. benguelensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Marcelaria benguelensis | |
| Synonyms [1] [2] | |
Marcelaria benguelensis is a tropical species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) and crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. It is found in continental southeast Asia.
The lichen was first formally described in 1885 by Swiss botanist Johannes Müller Argoviensis as a species of Bathelium . The type specimen was collected in India. [3] In 1922, Alexander Zahlbruckner transferred it to the genus Laurera . [4] The taxon was one of three species transferred to the newly circumscribed genus Marcelaria in 2013. [2]
The taxon Laurera subbenguelensis described in 1987 by Dalip Kumar Upreti and Ajay Singh from specimens found in Kerala, [5] was later determined to be synonymous with Marcelaria benguelensis. [2]
Marcelaria benguelensis has an olive-green, crustose thallus with a surface that often has an orange pruina. The ascomata resemble warts on the thallus surface; they are 0.6–1 mm in diameter, and cluster together in groups of 2 to 6. The ascospores, which number 8 per ascus, are muriform (divided into chambers) with 15 to 23 septa running transversely through the spore and 3 to 7 that are longitudinal; the spores measure 50–80 by 17–23 μm and have a gelatinous sheath that is 3–12 μm thick. [2]
Marcelaria benguelensis contains the secondary compounds parietin and teloschistin (both anthraquinone pigments) and lichexanthone. The latter substance causes the thallus to fluoresce a yellow colour when shone with a UV light. [2] Laboratory tests have shown that extracts of the lichen have antimicrobial properties, which are attributed to the presence of lichexanthone. [6]
The lichen has been recorded from Cambodia, India, Myanmar, the Philippines, [2] and Thailand. [6]
Bogoriella is a genus of crustose lichens in the family Trypetheliaceae. The genus was circumscribed by Alexander Zahlbruckner in 1928, with Bogoriella subpersicina assigned as the type species. It was later shown that Bogoriella was an older name for Mycomicrothelia, and so all of the species that were in that genus needed to be transferred to Bogoriella.
The Trypetheliaceae are a family of mainly lichen-forming fungi in the order Trypetheliales.
Astrothelium is a genus of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichens in the family Trypetheliaceae.
Bathelium is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Trypetheliaceae. The genus was circumscribed in 1803 by Swedish lichenologist Erik Acharius, with Bathelium mastoideum assigned as the type species.
Lichexanthone is an organic compound in the structural class of chemicals known as xanthones. Lichexanthone was first isolated and identified by Japanese chemists from a species of leafy lichen in the 1940s. The compound is known to occur in many lichens, and it is important in the taxonomy of species in several genera, such as Pertusaria and Pyxine. More than a dozen lichen species have a variation of the word lichexanthone incorporated as part of their binomial name. The presence of lichexanthone in lichens causes them to fluoresce a greenish-yellow colour under long-wavelength UV light; this feature is used to help identify some species. Lichexanthone is also found in several plants, and some species of fungi that do not form lichens.
Enterographa lichexanthonica is a species of crustose and corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Roccellaceae. Found in the Brazilian Amazon, it was formally introduced as a new species in 2017 by lichenologists Marcela Eugenia Cáceres and André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected by the authors from the Adolfo Ducke Forest Reserve, along trails near a field station; here, it was found growing on tree bark in a old-growth rainforest. The lichen has a thin, dull, pale greenish thallus surrounded by a thin black prothallus. Its ascospores are hyaline, have seven septa, and measure 21–27 by 5–6 μm; they have a 1 μm-thick gelatinous sheath surrounding them. The specific epithet lichexanthonica refers to lichexanthone, a secondary chemical that occurs in the cortex of the lichen. This compound causes the lichen to fluoresce yellow when a UV light is shone upon it. Enterographa lichexanthonica is morphologically similar to E. kalbii, but this latter species has lichexanthone only on the ascomata, not on the thallus.
Astrothelium megeustomurale is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Brazil, it was formally described as a new species in 2017 by Marcela Eugenia da Silva Cáceres and André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected by the authors along a trail near a field station in the Adolfo Ducke Forest Reserve (Manaus); here it was found growing on tree bark in old-growth rainforest. The lichen has a dull olive-greenish thallus lacking a prothallus, with spherical to pear-shaped ascomata that are either immersed in or on top of the thallus surface, typically arranged in groups of 5 to 15. The pseudostromata contain lichexanthone, a secondary chemical. The ascospores number four per ascus, are muriform, and measure 95–120 by 30–33 μm. The species epithet refers to the large ascospores (meg-), the resemblance to A. eustomum (-eusto-), and the muriform ascospores (-murale).
Architrypethelium barrerae is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) and crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. It is found in cloud forests of Xalapa city, Mexico.
Marcelaria is a genus of crustose lichens in the family Trypetheliaceae. It has three species. The genus was circumscribed in 2013 by André Aptroot, Matthew P. Nelsen, and Sittiporn Parnmen, with Marcelaria purpurina assigned as the type species. The genus contains species that were previously in the Laurera purpurina species group. Species in Marcelaria contain secondary compounds such as red, orange, and yellow anthraquinones, and sometimes lichexanthone. The genus name honours Brazilian lichenologist Marcela Cáceres.
Acanthothecis submuriformis 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 André Aptroot, Robert Lücking, and Marcela Eugenia da Silva M.Cáceres. The type specimen was collected from the Parque Natural Municipal ; here the lichen was found growing on tree bark in primary rainforest.
Astrothelium macroeustomum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in French Guiana, it was formally described as a new species in 2019 by lichenologists André Aptroot and Harrie Sipman. The type specimen was collected by Sipman from the Piste Crique Limonade at an altitude of 300 m (980 ft). The lichen has a mostly smooth, pale ochraceous-brown thallus that is somewhat shiny and covers areas up to 9 cm (4 in) in diameter. It is surrounded by a dark brown prothallus. It has pear-shaped (pyriform) ascomata, measuring 0.6–1.0 mm in diameter, which mostly aggregate in groups of two to five, and are more or less immersed in the tissue of the bark, below the thallus surface. They have convex, black ostioles (pores) that are surrounded by a yellowish-white ring of pruina. The ascospores are hyaline, spindle-shaped (fusiform) with five septa and measure 50–55 by 12–17 μm. The lichen contains lichexanthone, a lichen product that causes the ostioles of the ascomata to fluoresce yellow when lit with a long-wavelength UV light. The specific epithet macroeustomum refers to both its large spores and its similarity to Astrothelium eustomum.
Astrothelium colombiense is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Colombia, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by Dutch lichenologist André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected from the Estacion Forestal La Espriella at an altitude of 35 m (115 ft). The lichen has shiny, pale ochraceous green thallus with a smooth to somewhat roughened texture. It has a cortex but lacks a prothallus. There is only a single ascospore in each ascus; this is a rarity in genus Astrothelium. The spores are hyaline, ellipsoid in shape, and muriform ; they measure 240–300 by 45–50 µm. No lichen products were detected in this species. The specific epithet refers to the country of the type locality.
Astrothelium corallinum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Guyana, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected from Rain Mountain, southeast of the village in Paruima Mission at an altitude of 500 m (1,600 ft); here, it was found growing on the smooth bark of trees in a rainforest. The lichen has a smooth, somewhat shiny thallus that covers areas of up to 8 cm (3.1 in) in diameter; the entire thallus is surrounded by a thin (0.3 mm) black line that is the prothallus. The whitish parts of the pseudostromata will fluoresce yellow when lit with a long-wavelength UV light; this is due to the presence of lichexanthone, a lichen product. The thallus, however, does not contain lichexanthone, which distinguishes it from the similar species A. ochroleucoides.
Astrothelium dicoloratum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Venezuela, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected southwest of La Esmeralda at an altitude of 110 m (360 ft); here, in a rainforest, the lichen was found growing on the smooth bark of trees. The thallus is completely covered with bright orange pigment. There is a single ascospore in the asci. These spores are hyaline, ellipsoid in shape, with 9 to 11 septa and dimensions of 50–75 by 11–15 µm. Chemical analysis of the lichen using thin-layer chromatography revealed the presence of an unnamed anthraquinone.
Astrothelium flavomaculatum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Guyana, Venezuela, and Ecuador, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by Dutch lichenologist André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected by the author from the Cordillera del Cóndor at an altitude of 1,200 m (3,900 ft). The lichen has a shiny, smooth to somewhat bullate thallus that covers an area of up to 4 cm (1.6 in) in diameter. It is green with a thin orange pruina. Its ascospores are hyaline, ellipsoid in shape, and muriform, with dimensions of 50–75 by 12–25 µm. It is somewhat similar in appearance to Astrothelium graphicum , but that species has somewhat smaller ascospores with lengths up to 66 µm.
Astrothelium vulcanum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Guyana, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected from the Kuyuwini Landing (Rupununi) at an elevation of 200 m (660 ft); here, in a savannah forest, it was found growing on the smooth bark of trees. The lichen has a smooth, somewhat shiny thallus surrounded by a thin black prothallus, and covering areas up to 25 cm (10 in) in diameter. Its ascospores are spindle-shaped (fusiform) with rounded edges, with three septa and dimensions of 20–25 by 6.5–7.5 µm. Astrothelium vulcanum contains lichexanthone, a lichen product that causes the thallus to fluoresce when lit with a long-wavelength UV light.
Astrothelium ultralucens is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Venezuela, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected by Harrie Sipman along the Carapo River at an elevation of 800 m (2,600 ft). The lichen has a smooth, somewhat shiny pale greenish grey thallus that covers an area of up to 7 cm (2.8 in). Its ascospores are hyaline, spindle-shaped (fusiform) with three septa and dimensions of 105–130 by 35–42 µm. Astrothelium ultralucens contains lichexanthone, a lichen product that causes the pseudostromata and the thallus to fluoresce yellow when lit with a long-wavelength UV light, although the thallus only weakly.
Astrothelium mediocrassum is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. Found in Guyana, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by Dutch lichenologist André Aptroot. The type specimen was collected by Harrie Sipman south of the Kuyuwini Landing at an altitude of 230 m (750 ft). The lichen has a somewhat shiny, smooth, pale green thallus that covers an area of up to 12 cm (4.7 in) in diameter. Its ascospores are hyaline, spindle-shaped (fusiform), and muriform, with dimensions of 70–80 by 22–25 µm. This is the smallest ascospore size of Astrothelia species. The middle, or median, septum of the spore is thickened in comparison with the others. No lichen products were detected using thin-layer chromatography. It is somewhat similar in appearance to Astrothelium octosporum, but that species has lichexanthone in its thallus and pseudostromata.
Astrothelium aeneoides is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. It is found in Brazil, Guyana, and Puerto Rico, where it grows on the smooth bark of rainforest trees.
Astrothelium stromatofluorescens is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Trypetheliaceae. It is only known to occur in a few locations in Brazil and Bolivia.