Nodobryoria

Nodobryoria
The budding apothecium of Nodobryoria oregana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Fungi
Division:	Ascomycota
Class:	Lecanoromycetes
Order:	Lecanorales
Family:	Parmeliaceae
Genus:	Nodobryoria Common & Brodo (1995)
Type species
Nodobryoria abbreviata (Müll.Arg.) Common & Brodo (1995)
Species
N. abbreviata N. oregana N. subdivergens

Nodobryoria is a genus of medium to large, reddish-brown lichens that are hair-like to shrubby (fruticose) in shape and grow on conifer trees. ^[1] The genus contains three species, distributed in North America and Greenland, ^[2] which were previously included in the genus Bryoria . ^[3] Nodobryoria is similar in appearance to Bryoria, but is differentiated because it does not contain the polysaccharide lichenin (which is present in high quantities in Bryoria), ^[4] and it has a unique cortex composed of interlocking cells that look like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle when viewed under a light microscope. ^[5]

Ecology

Studies of Nodobryoria distribution in coniferous forests have shown that this melanic hair lichen genus shares ecological preferences with its close relative Bryoria, but has more specialized habitat requirements. Research in British Columbia found that Nodobryoria species, particularly N. oregana and N. abbreviata, achieve their highest abundance on south-facing slopes near mountain summits where sun exposure is intense. However, Nodobryoria tends to be comparatively sparse compared to Bryoria, suggesting a narrower ecological niche. Like other melanic hair lichens, Nodobryoria species possess dark pigments that provide protection against high light exposure, allowing them to colonize sun-exposed habitats. Their restricted distribution pattern, primarily in upper elevation zones with high light intensity, indicates that Nodobryoria may be more specialized for extreme light conditions than the more broadly distributed Bryoria species. ^[6]

Although sometimes locally common, Nodobryoria rarely develops the heavy canopy loads characteristic of related Bryoria species. In inland temperate rainforests of British Columbia, Canada, N. oregana can occur with moderate abundance, but its contribution to total canopy biomass is minor compared to Bryoria fremontii or B. pseudofuscescens . This lower overall abundance means that while Nodobryoria contributes to the "hair lichen" community, it plays a smaller role in sustaining large herbivores such as woodland caribou. ^[7]

References

1. Brodo IM, Sharnoff SD, Sharnoff S (2001). Lichens of North America. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. ISBN   0-300-08249-5.
2. Kirk PM, Cannon PF, Minter DW, Stalpers JA (2008). Dictionary of the Fungi (10th ed.). Wallingford: CABI. p.  470. ISBN   978-0-85199-826-8.
3. Common RS, Brodo IM (2001). "Bryoria sect. subdivergentes recognized as the new genus Nodobryoria (lichenized Ascomycotina)". The Bryologist. 98 (2): 189–206. doi:10.2307/3243304. JSTOR   3243304.
4. Common RS. (1991). "The distribution and taxonomic significance of lichenan and isolichenan in the Parmeliaceae (lichenized Ascomycotina), as determined by iodine reactions I. Introduction and methods. II. The genus Alectoria and associated taxa". Mycotaxon. 41 (1): 67–112. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
5. Brodo IM, Hawksworth DL (1977). Alectoria and allied genera in North America. Opera Botanica. Vol. 42. Stockholm: Swedish Natural Science Research Council. pp. 1–164.
6. Gauslaa, Yngvar; Goward, Trevor (2023). "Sunscreening pigments shape the horizontal distribution of pendent hair lichens in the lower canopy of unmanaged coniferous forests". The Lichenologist. 55 (2): 81–89. doi:10.1017/S0024282923000075.
7. Goward, Trevor; Coxson, Darwyn; Gauslaa, Yngvar (2024). "The Manna Effect – a review of factors influencing hair lichen abundance for Canada's endangered Deep-Snow Mountain Caribou (Rangifer arcticus montanus)". The Lichenologist. 56 (4): 121–135. doi: 10.1017/S0024282924000161 .

External links

• Picture of Nodobryoria abbreviata by Stephen Sharnoff
• Picture of Nodobryoria oregana by Stephen Sharnoff