| Roccellinastrum | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Specimen of Roccellinastrum neglectum, collected in New Zealand | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
| Order: | Lecanorales |
| Family: | Pilocarpaceae |
| Genus: | Roccellinastrum Follmann (1968) |
| Type species | |
| Roccellinastrum spongoideum Follmann (1968) | |
| Species | |
R. candidum Contents | |
Roccellinastrum is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Pilocarpaceae. It has seven species.
The genus was circumscribed in 1968 by German lichenologist Gerhard Follman, with Roccellinastrum spongoideum assigned as the type species. This byssoid lichen (appearing wispy, like teased wool) was found growing on cactus spines in the fog oases of western Chile. Follman classified the genus in the family Chrysothricaceae, as he emphasized the taxonomic importance of the byssoid thallus, and the similarity of the apothecium and ascus structure to those in that family. [1] In 1983, Aino Henssen and colleagues emended the genus and placed it in the family Lecideaceae. [2] Roccellinastrum is now classified in the family Pilocarpaceae. [3]
Species in genus Roccellinastrum are characterized by apothecia of diverse shape that lack a proper margin, and a developmental morphology corresponding to that of the order Lecanorales. They have small, amyloid asci containing eight spores, and branched paraphyses and excipular hyphae. Their wispy (byssoid) to spongy (spongiose) thallus is made of thick–walled hyphae. The phycobiont partners are green algae of the order Chlorococcales. The main secondary chemical produced by Roccellinastrum lichens is protocetraric acid. Other compounds, such as atranorin or squamatic acid, may also be present. [2]
The Roccellaceae are a family of fungi in the order Arthoniomycetes. Most taxa are lichenized with green algae, although some are lichenicolous, growing on other lichens.
The Pilocarpaceae are a family of crustose lichens in the order Lecanorales. The species of this family have a cosmopolitan distribution and have been found in a variety of climatic regions. Pilocarpaceae was circumscribed by Alexander Zahlbruckner in Adolf Engler's influential 1905 work Die Natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien.
Gloeoheppiaceae is a family of ascomycete fungi in the order Lichinales. The family contains ten species distributed amongst three genera. Most species are lichenised with cyanobacteria. Species in this family are mostly found in desert areas. Modern molecular phylogenetics analysis casts doubt on the phylogenetic validity of the family, suggesting a more appropriate placement of its species in the family Lichinaceae.
The Lichinaceae are a family of ascomycete fungi. Most species are lichenized with cyanobacteria, and have a distribution largely in temperate regions.
Cladia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Cladoniaceae. Cladia species have a crustose or squamulose (scaly) primary thallus and a fruticose, secondary thallus, often referred to as pseudopodetium. The type species of the genus, Cladia aggregata, is widely distributed, occurring in South America, South Africa, Australasia and South-East Asia to southern Japan and India. Most of the other species are found in the Southern Hemisphere.
Porina is a genus of lichens in the family Trichotheliaceae. A 2020 estimate places about 145 species in the widespread genus.
Septotrapelia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Pilocarpaceae. It has four species. It was validly published as a genus in 2007 by lichenologists André Aptroot and Jose-Luis Chaves.
Micarea is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Pilocarpaceae. The widely distributed genus contains 126 species and new species are described actively. Species in the genus are crustose lichens and their photobiont is a single-celled green alga.
Santessonia is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Caliciaceae. The genus was circumscribed in 1978 by lichenologists Mason Hale and Gernot Vobis, with Santessonia namibensis assigned as the type species, and at that time, only species. This species, endemic to the Namib Desert, has deep depressions (lacunae) in the thallus, which are interpreted as an adaptation to take advantage of the infrequent moisture provided by fog. The genus name honours Norwegian lichenologist Rolf Santesson.
Lecanactis is a genus of crustose lichens, commonly called old wood rimmed lichen. The genus was circumscribed in 1855 by German lichenologist Gustav Wilhelm Körber, who assigned Lecanactis abietina as the type species.
Roccella is a genus of 23 species of lichens in the family Roccellaceae. The genus was circumscribed by Swiss botanist Augustin Pyramus de Candolle in 1805, with Roccella fuciformis as the type species.
Lichens are symbiotic organisms made up of multiple species: a fungus, one or more photobionts and sometimes a yeast. They are regularly grouped by their external appearance – a characteristic known as their growth form. This form, which is based on the appearance of vegetative part of the lichen, varies depending on the species and the environmental conditions it faces. Those who study lichens (lichenologists) have described a dozen of these forms: areolate, byssoid, calicioid, cladoniform, crustose, filamentous, foliose, fruticose, gelatinous, leprose, placoidioid and squamulose. Traditionally, crustose (flat), foliose (leafy) and fruticose (shrubby) are considered to be the three main forms. In addition to these more formalised, traditional growth types, there are a handful of informal types named for their resemblance to the lichens of specific genera. These include alectorioid, catapyrenioid, cetrarioid, hypogymnioid, parmelioid and usneoid.
Malmideaceae is a family of crustose and corticolous lichens in the order Lecanorales. It contains eight genera and about 70 species.
Malmidea is a genus of crustose lichens and the type genus of the family Malmideaceae. It was established in 2011 to contain a phylogenetically distinct group of species formerly placed in the genus Malcolmiella. The crust-like thallus of Malmidea lichens has a surface that varies from smooth to rough, featuring textures such as verrucose (wart-like), granulose (grainy), or pustulate (pimpled). These textures are often formed by goniocysts, which are spherical clusters of green algal cells from the family Chlorococcaceae, encased in fungal hyphae. Malmidea comprises nearly 70 mostly tropical species that grow on bark, although a few grow on leaves.
Neoprotoparmelia is a genus of crustose lichens that was created in 2018. It contains 24 tropical and subtropical species that mostly grow on bark. Neoprotoparmelia is in the subfamily Protoparmelioideae of the family Parmeliaceae, along with the morphologically similar genera Protoparmelia and Maronina.
Coenogonium is a genus of filamentous lichens in the monotypic family Coenogoniaceae. It has about 90 species. Most species are leaf-dwelling or grow on bark, although a few are known to grow on rocks under certain conditions, and some are restricted to growth on termite nests. The genus was circumscribed in 1820 by German naturalist Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg.
Megalospora is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Megalosporaceae.
Roccellinastrum lagarostrobi is a rare species of byssoid (wispy) lichen in the family Byssolomataceae. Found in Australia, it was formally described as a new species in 1990 by lichenologist Gintaras Kantvilas. The type specimen was collected from Pine Creek, north of Greystone bluff (Tasmania) at an altitude of 140 m (460 ft); here, along the bank of a stream, at the edge of a rainforest, the lichen was found growing as an epiphyte on leafy twigs of the endemic conifer Lagarostrobos franklinii. It has a white, cottony (byssoid) thallus that forms irregularly shaped tufts typically measuring 2–4 mm wide. The lichen produces the chemical protocetraric acid. The species epithet lagarostrobi refers to the genus of the phorophyte. It is only known to occur at a few locations in Tasmania; its diminutive size and somewhat inconspicuous appearance makes it easy to miss.
Gintarasia is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Graphidaceae. It has seven species, all of which are found in Australia. Gintarasia species are corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichens with a thelotremoid form.
Fulvophyton is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Roccellographaceae. It has 11 species. Fulvophyton is characterised by its crust-like thallus, which is often pale yellowish-brown in colour. This genus features a photobiont from the green algal genus Trentepohlia and exhibits a unique arrangement of reproductive structures.