Porinaceae is a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Gyalectales. While Trichotheliaceae was proposed as an alternative, Porinaceae is the widely accepted name following ongoing nomenclatural discussions. Most members of this family typically have a crust-like appearance and grow on a variety of surfaces, including tree bark, leaves, and rocks. Porinaceae is known for its diverse morphology, ranging from simple crust-like forms to more complex structures with distinct lobes or fan-shaped scales. Porinaceae species generate small, typically flask-shaped reproductive structures, which house spores essential for reproduction. It includes nine recognised genera and more than 365 species, with significant diversity in tropical and subtropical regions.
Porina is a genus of crustose lichens in the family Porinaceae. As of August 2024, Species Fungorum accepts 161 species of Porina.
Gallaicolichen is a fungal genus that contains the single species Gallaicolichen pacificus, a foliicolous (leaf-dwelling) lichen. Originally discovered in Hawaii in 2007, G. pacificus has since been found in various locations across the Pacific, including Australia, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, the Philippines, and Japan. The lichen forms small, pale greenish-yellow to yellowish-grey patches on leaves, typically in mid-altitude forests and along forest edges. G. pacificus is notable for its unique reproductive structures called peltidiangia, which produce disc-shaped propagules (peltidia) for asexual reproduction. Initially, its taxonomic classification was uncertain, but recent discoveries of specimens with sexual reproductive structures have enabled scientists to confidently place it within the family Porinaceae.
Porina gryseelsiana is a species of foliicolous lichen belonging to the family Porinaceae. It was discovered in Orientale Province, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the leaves of understorey plants in a tropical rainforest. It was subsequently described as new to science in 2014. It is a rare species which is only known from this one collection.
Hydropunctaria orae is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is a marine lichen. Found in Great Britain, it was formally described as a new species in 2012 by lichenologist Alan Orange. The type specimen was collected near Haverfordwest, where it was found growing on steep rocks on northwest-facing seashore. It has also been recorded in Ireland. The species epithet orae is derived from the Latin ora. The lichen has a thin, dull mid green to dark greenish-grey thallus that is roughened by tiny warts (punctae) measuring 20–40 μm wide.
Psoroglaena stigonemoides is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It occurs in Great Britain and Ireland. It was first described scientifically by lichenologist Alan Orange in 1989, as Macentina stigonemoides. He collected the type specimen from Cardiganshire, Cambria, where it was found growing on the bark of Ulmus glabra in a humid forest. Aino Henssen transferred it to the genus Psoroglaena in 1995.
Verrucaria nodosa is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. Found in freshwater habitats in Wales, it was formally described as a new species in 2013 by lichenologist Alan Orange. The type specimen was collected by the author north-west of Llanuwchllyn, Merioneth, where it was found growing on an unshaded rock in a stream. The lichen has a grey-green to dark brown thallus with an uneven surface crust. Its ascomata are in the form of somewhat convex to hemispherical perithecia measuring 220–460 μm in diameter, with an inconspicuous or tiny ostiole. Ascospores are ellipsoid and colourless, lack any septa, and typically measure 20.5–22.2–24.0 by 90–97–105 μm. The species is known only from a few streams in Wales, where it grows on shaded or lightly shaded rocks. Associated lichen species include Ionaspis lacustris, Rhizocarpon lavatum, Porpidia hydrophila, Sporodictyon cruentum, and Trapelia coarctata, as well as the mosses Racomitrium aciculare and Scapania undulata.
Verrucaria rosula is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. Found in freshwater habitats in Europe, it was formally described as a new species in 2013 by lichenologist Alan Orange. The type specimen was collected by the author from Cwm Dringarth, Brecon Beacons (Brecknockshire), where it was found growing on an unshaded rock in a flush. The lichen has a grey-green to brown thallus that is 40–200 μm thick. New thallus growth is initiated by tiny, roughly spherical or polyhedral granules that increase in size to eventually form somewhat circular, rosette-like patches; the species epithet rosula refers to this type of growth. Verrucaria rosula has been recorded in Wales, southwest England, Scotland, and France, where it occurs on damp siliceous rocks and stones near streams or on flushed ground. Lichens that associate with V. rosula include Ionaspis lacustris, Thelidium pluvium, Verrucaria cernaensis, V. hydrophila, V. sublobulata and V. margacea.
Catillaria gilbertii is a rare species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Catillariaceae. It is found in the Central Highlands of Scotland.
Myeloconis is a genus of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichens in the family Porinaceae. It has four species. The genus was circumscribed in 1996 by Patrick M. McCarthy and John Elix, with M. fecunda assigned as the type species. The genus name, derived from the Greek myelos and konis ("dust"), refers to the powdery yellow-orange pigments in the medulla.
Myeloconis parva is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae. Found in Amazonian Brazil, it was formally described as a new species in 1996 by Patrick M. McCarthy and John Elix.
Porina howeana is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae. Found on Lord Howe Island, Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 1997 by lichenologist Patrick M. McCarthy. The type specimen was collected by the author from east of Dawsons Point Ridge on Max Nicholls Track, where it was growing on shaded basalt.
Porina linearispora is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) lichen in the family Porinaceae. Found in Brazil, it was formally described as a new species in 2013 by lichenologists André Aptroot and Marcela Cáceres. The type specimen was collected by the authors from the Parque Natural Municipal de Porto Velho, where it was found growing on bark in a primary rainforest. The lichen is distinguished from other members of genus Porina by its long and thin ascospores, for which the species is named.
Porina mariae is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae. Found on Lord Howe Island, Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 1997 by lichenologist Patrick M. McCarthy. The type specimen was collected by the author on the track from Smoking Tree Ridge to Boat Harbour, where it was growing on deeply shaded basalt. The species epithet honours the author's wife, Marie Meaney-McCarthy, "in recognition of her unwavering encouragement and support".
Porina ocellatoides is a species of saxicolous, (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae. Found on Lord Howe Island, Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 1997 by lichenologist Patrick M. McCarthy. The type specimen was collected by the author on the track from Smoking Tree Ridge to Boat Harbour, where it was found growing on deeply shaded basalt. Its species epithet ocellatoides alludes to its resemblance to Porina ocellata.
Trichothelium longisetum is a little-known species of wood-dwelling, crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae. Found in northeastern Ecuador, it was formally described as a new species by lichenologists Patrick M. McCarthy and Zdeněk Palice in 2003. The species epithet longisetum refers to the long, narrow setae that characterize this species.
Porina monilisidiata is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae, first described in 2016. This species is characterised by its shiny, olive-green thallus with numerous isidia and low conical ascomata.
Porina microtriseptata is a species of corticolous, crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae, first described in 2016. This species is distinguished by its shiny, olive-green thallus and hemispherical ascomata with pointed ascospores that are consistently hyaline, fusiform, and have three internal partitions (septa).
Porina boliviana is a species of foliicolous (leaf-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Porinaceae. It was formally described as a new species in 2008 by the lichenologists Adam Flakus and Robert Lücking. They named it after the country where it was discovered, Bolivia. Flakus collected the type specimen from Nuevos Reyes village in the José Ballivián Province, where he found it growing on palm tree leaves in a lowland Amazon forest.
