Porpidia | |
---|---|
Porpidia albocaerulescens | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Fungi |
Division: | Ascomycota |
Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
Order: | Lecideales |
Family: | Lecideaceae |
Genus: | Porpidia Körb. (1855) |
Type species | |
Porpidia trullisata (Kremp.) Körb. (1855) | |
Synonyms [1] | |
Porpidia is a genus of crustose lichens in the family Lecideaceae. [2] Porpidia species primarily inhabit siliceous rocks, pebbles, and stonework, with rare occurrences on bark, wood, and compacted soil. The thallus, or body of the lichen, varies in appearance from thick and crusty to barely visible. It may form a continuous layer or develop cracks resulting in a segmented, areolate structure. The colour of the thallus ranges from grey and white to orange.
Porpidia was circumscribed by the German lichenologist Gustav Wilhelm Körber in 1855, with Porpidia trullisata designated as the type species. [3]
Genus Porpidia consists of crustose lichens, meaning the thallus (the main body of the lichen) is closely attached to the surface it grows on. The thallus can vary in appearance, from thick and scaly to almost invisible, and may be solid or cracked into small pieces called areoles . Its colour typically ranges from grey to white, though some species may show orange hues. A prothallus , a thin, often black or orange border between neighbouring lichens, may be present but is not always visible. The lichen's inner structure, or medulla, may or may not react with iodine (I+ or I–), and some species produce powdery soredia for reproduction, while others do not. One species of Porpidia even has isidia—small, finger-like structures that aid in reproduction. The lichen's green algae partner is usually from the genera Trebouxia or Asterochloris . [4]
The apothecia (fruiting bodies) are common and can appear either scattered or in clusters. These round, dark brown to black discs are often relatively large, ranging from 0.5 to 3 mm in diameter, and may be coated with a frosty layer (a pruina ). The apothecia have a distinct outer margin, which may fade as the lichen ages, and are seated directly on the surface of the thallus without a thalline margin (a rim formed by the thallus itself). The rim surrounding the apothecia is usually dark blue-black or brown, and made of tightly packed fungal filaments. [4]
Under the surface, the reproductive layer (the hymenium) reacts with iodine (I+) to turn blue, a useful trait for identification. The asci, the spore-producing sacs, each hold eight spores and have a distinctive shape called the "Porpidia-type". The ascospores are typically ellipsoid and measure 15–22 μm long, with a thick outer layer. In some species, other reproductive structures, known as conidiomata, are present and often have a rough surface. [4]
As of September 2024 [update] , Species Fungorum accepts 41 species of Porpidia: [5]
Psora is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Psoraceae. Members of the genus are commonly called fishscale lichens. Lichens in the genus Psora generally have a squamulose thallus and anthraquinones in the hymenium. Photobiont partners of Psora lichens include members of the green algal genera Asterochloris, Chloroidium, Myrmecia, and Trebouxia.
Bacidia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Ramalinaceae. The genus was circumscribed by Giuseppe De Notaris in 1846.
Carbonea is a genus of fungi in the family Lecanoraceae. Most of the species grow on lichens. The genus is widespread, and contains 20 species. Carbonea was originally circumscribed as a subgenus of Lecidea in 1967 before it was promoted to generic status in 1983.
Lecidella is a genus of crustose lichens in the family Lecanoraceae.
Miriquidica is a genus of lichen in the family Lecanoraceae. The genus was circumscribed in 1987 by lichenologists Hannes Hertel and Gerhard Rambold, with Miriquidica complanata assigned as the type species. According to Dictionary of the Fungi, the widespread genus contains 23 species, found predominantly in arctic-alpine regions.
The Lecideaceae are a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Lecideales. It contains about 30 genera and roughly 250 species. A major distinguishing characteristic of the family is the lecanoroid form of the fruiting bodies: typically circular, dark, and without a thalline margin. Most species in the family are lichenised with green algae, although a few species, scattered amongst several genera, are lichenicolous—they live on other lichens. Lecideaceae lichens tend to grow on rocks, wood, and soil. Several Lecideaceae species accelerate the weathering of rock surfaces, a process known as pedogenesis, by extending their hyphae into cracks and expelling rock flakes. This contributes to significantly faster weathering rates in certain environments, impacts various materials from natural rocks to man-made Sekishu roof tiles, and involves key biomolecules identified for survival and biodeterioration, including compounds to withstand intense ultraviolet radiation.
Immersaria is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Lecideaceae. It has eight species of crustose lichens.
Poeltiaria is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Lecideaceae. It was circumscribed in 1984 by lichenologist Hannes Hertel, with Poeltiaria turgescens assigned as the type species.
Rhizocarpon is a genus of crustose, saxicolous, lecideoid lichens in the family Rhizocarpaceae. The genus is common in arctic-alpine environments, but also occurs throughout temperate, subtropical, and even tropical regions. They are commonly known as map lichens because of the prothallus forming border-like bands between colonies in some species, like the common map lichen.
Hypocenomyce is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Ophioparmaceae. Species in the genus grow on bark and on wood, especially on burned tree stumps and trunks in coniferous forest. Hypocenomyce lichens are widely distributed in the northern hemisphere.
Schaereria is a genus of lichen-forming fungi. It is the sole genus in the family Schaereriaceae, which itself is the only family in the Schaereriales, an order in the subclass Ostropomycetidae of the class Lecanoromycetes. Most Schaereria species are crustose lichens that live on rocks. Schaereria was first proposed by Gustav Wilhelm Körber in 1855 and was later taken up by other lichenologists despite periods of disuse.
Porpidia seakensis is a species of crustose lichen in the family Lecideaceae. It is an endolithic species, meaning it grows inside the rocks, between the grains. Found only in Alaska, it was formally described as a new species in 2020 by British lichenologist Alan Fryday. The type specimen was collected in the Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, in Glacier Bay National Park. Here it was discovered growing on granitic rock in a woodland. The lichen is only known from this area, although it is locally common. Its preferred habitat is siliceous rocks and boulders in wooded areas that are open and well lit. The specific epithet seakensis uses the letters "seak" to refer to a standard abbreviation for southeast Alaska.
Hannes Hertel is a German lichenologist and taxonomist and was Director of the State Herbarium in Munich, Germany 1992–2004. His specialist areas are the fungi and lichens.
Porpidia submelinodes is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Lecideaceae. Found in the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica, it was formally described as a new species in 2011 by lichenologists Piotr Osyczka and Maria Olech. The type specimen was collected from Penguin Island, where it was found growing on a volcanic boulder. The lichen has a rusty orange thallus comprising distinct rounded areoles surrounded by deep cracks, and an inconspicuous black prothallus. It has soralia that are black with a whitish rim. All examined specimens were sterile, producing neither apothecia nor pycnidia. All chemical spot tests are negative, and the species does not contain any lichen products detectable with thin-layer chromatography. The species epithet refers to its similarity with Porpidia melinodes.
Confluentic acid is an organic compound belonging to the chemical class known as depsides. It serves as a secondary metabolite in certain lichens and plays a role in distinguishing closely related species within the genus Porpidia. In 1899, Friedrich Wilhelm Zopf isolated a compound from Lecidea confluens, which he initially named confluentin and noted for its melting point of 147–148 °C. This substance demonstrated the ability to turn litmus paper red and, when interacting with alkali, decomposed into carbon dioxide and phenol-like compounds. Zopf subsequently revised the chemical formula and melting point of the compound. Siegfried Huneck renamed it confluentinic acid in 1962, characterising it as optically inactive, with distinct colour reactions and solubility properties, and determined its molecular formula as C28H36O8.
Porpidia nadvornikiana is a rare species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Lecideaceae. It is known to occur only in two localities, in the Czech Republic and in Spain, where it grows on serpentinite, an ultramafic rock.
Porpidia macrocarpa is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Lecideaceae.
Stenhammarella is a fungal genus that contains a single species, Stenhammarella turgida, a saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen. This lichen grows on limestone rocks in alpine environments and is found in Europe and China. It was first described in 1810 by the Swedish lichenologist Erik Acharius, the "father of lichenology". The lichen has a chalky, greyish body with distinctive reproductive structures (apothecia) that change appearance as the organism matures. Initially classified under various names and genera, it was given its own genus, Stenhammarella, in 1967. Modern genetic studies have placed it in the Lecideaceae family of fungi, revealing its close relationship to lichens in the genus Porpidia.
Lecaimmeria is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Lecideaceae. Established in 2022, it comprises 13 species of lichens that grow on rock surfaces (saxicolous) and form a thin, crust-like covering (crustose) on their substrate. These lichens are characterised by their glossy, orange to red-brown outer layer (thallus) and sunken fruiting bodies (apothecia) with red-brown centres. Lecaimmeria species are typically found in harsh environments at high altitudes or latitudes, particularly in mountainous regions of western China and across parts of Eurasia. The genus was created to accommodate species previously classified under Immersaria that shared certain distinct features, following molecular analysis that revealed they formed a separate group.