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.
Caloplaca saviczii is a species of crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. Found in the Russian Far East, it was formally described as a new species in 2021 by Ivan Frolov, Dmitry Himelbrant, Irina Stepanchikova, Liudmila Konoreva, and Sergey Chesnokov. The type specimen was collected in the fluvial valley of River Katal'yanayvayam ; here, in a floodplain forest, it was found growing on the bark of Populus suaveolens. The specific epithet saviczii honours Russian lichenologist Vsevolod Pavlovich Savich (1885–1972), who studied the lichens of Kamchatka.
Lendemeriella aureopruinosa is a species of crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. Found in the Russian Far East, it was formally described as a new species in 2021 by Ivan Frolov, Jan Vondrák, Ulf Arup, Liudmila Konoreva, and Sergey Chesnokov, Lidia Yakovchenko, and Evgeny Davydov. The type specimen was collected on the banks of River Bes-Yuryakh ; here it was found growing on siliceous outcrops in a forest comprising largely birch, alder, and larch trees. The thallus of the lichen ranges in form from an inconspicuous grey film to a more well-developed crust or areoles. Its apothecia measure 0.3–0.6 mm in diameter and have a dark-orange to brick-red coloured disc. Secondary chemicals detected in the lichen include parietin, parietinic acid, emodin, teloschistin, and fallacinal. The specific epithet aureopruinosa refers to the bright gold-coloured pruina that is found on young apothecia.
Wilketalia is a fungal genus in the family Teloschistaceae. It is monotypic, containing the single species Wilketalia citrinoides, a saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen found in the Bolivian Andes.
Kuettlingeria is a genus of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichens in the family Teloschistaceae. Species are characterized by a white or gray thallus and the presence of anthraquinones in the apothecial disc and true exciple, with the exception of Kuettlingeria diphyodes, which entirely lacks anthraquinones. First described by Italian botanist Trevisan in 1857, the genus includes 15 recognized species, although it is believed to be more diverse with additional unnamed species. These lichens are predominantly found in the Northern Hemisphere, particularly in the Mediterranean region, and grow on limestone and base-rich siliceous outcrops in sunlit conditions.
Pyrenodesmia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. The genus currently includes 23 recognized species but is believed to contain many more unnamed taxa. The genus was circumscribed in 1852 by Italian lichenologist Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo. It is characterised by the complete absence of anthraquinones and the presence of Sedifolia-gray pigments in both the thallus and apothecia. These lichens are typically found in calcareous outcrops in the Northern Hemisphere, with biodiversity centres in the Mediterranean basin, Central Asia, and arid regions of western North America.
Sanguineodiscus is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It is characterized by its deep red apothecial discs, found predominantly in the Mediterranean basin, Central Asia, Northern Africa, and Europe. This genus comprises both saxicolous and corticolous species, which are found in various habitats, such as inland rain-sheltered base-rich siliceous rocks, seashore siliceous rocks, and calcareous outcrops in Central Asia. Sanguineodiscus, established in 2023, contains four recognized species, but it is believed that the genus contains more unnamed taxa.
Jasonhuria is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It is monotypic, containing only the species Jasonhuria bogilana. This species is a saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen that occurs in South Korea.
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.
Filsoniana kiamae is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is found in Australia. The lichen forms small rosettes with brownish-orange areoles, and it occasionally develops isidia. Its rare apothecia are round, with brownish-orange margins and a reddish disc.
Filsoniana rexfilsonii is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. Found in Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 2007. The thallus of Filsoniana rexfilsonii comprises brownish-orange squamules each hosting one to four reproductive structures.
Caloplaca sterilis is a corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen belonging to the family Teloschistaceae, described in 2011. It is primarily found in steppe and sand dune habitats in the Black Sea region, and has been recorded from Bulgaria, Romania, southwest Russia, and Ukraine. Caloplaca sterilis is characterised by tiny squamules/areoles with contrasting pale greyish-green to greenish soredia. It is easily overlooked and challenging to identify when completely sorediate and sterile, especially as its soredia do not contain the typical Sedifolia-grey pigment.
Caloplaca fluviatilis is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is found in the Republic of Tyva in Siberia.
Pyrenodesmia micromarina is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It is found in the Eastern Mediterranean, specifically along the coasts of the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara in Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine. It grows on coastal rocks and occasionally concrete, often in Mediterranean scrub vegetation.
Flavoplaca kantvilasii is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. Found in Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 2007.
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.
Kuettlingeria soralifera is a saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen species in the family Teloschistaceae, first described in 2006. It is similar to Kuettlingeria xerica but distinguished by the presence of soredia on its thallus.
Austroplaca soropelta is a species of saxicolous and muscicolous, crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae. It has a bipolar distribution, meaning it occurs in polar areas of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
Coppinsiella is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae. It contains five species of corticolous and saxicolous crustose lichens with a distribution in Europe, Asia, and North America. Coppinsiella bears resemblance to the genus Athallia, but it is distinguished by its more developed thallus, typically featuring distinctive crater-like soralia and zeorine-form apothecia, which lack a thalline margin.
Kuettlingeria neotaurica is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Teloschistaceae.
