Taitaia | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Fungi |
Division: | Ascomycota |
Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
Order: | Graphidales |
Family: | Gomphillaceae |
Genus: | Taitaia Suija, Kaasalainen, Kirika & Rikkinen (2018) |
Species: | T. aurea |
Binomial name | |
Taitaia aurea Suija, Kaasalainen, Kirika & Rikkinen (2018) | |
Taitaia is a single-species fungal genus in the family Gomphillaceae. [1] [2] It was circumscribed in 2018 to contain the species Taitaia aurea, a lichenicolous (lichen-dwelling) fungus. This species is characterized by aggregated ascomata with yellow margins, and salmon-red discs that originate from a single base. It is known only from a few sites in Kenya's tropical lower-mountain forests, where it grows on thalli of the lichen Crocodia . [3]
Taitaia aurea was first formally described by mycologists Ave Suija, Ulla Kaasalainen, Paul Kirika, and Jouko Rikkinen. The genus name Taitaia is derived from the Taita Hills in Kenya, where the species was first discovered. The species epithet aurea is a reference to the golden yellow colour of the margins of the fungal fruiting bodies. Molecular analysis showed Taitaia to be most closely related to the lichenised, saxicolous species Gyalidea fritzei , and both species form a clade that is sister to the lichenicolous Corticifraga peltigerae . [3] Taitaia was later resolved as monophyletic in a 2022 molecular-phylogenetic revision of the family Gomphillaceae. [4]
The type specimen was found in Taita-Taveta Province, near the summit of Vuria in a dense moist forest populated with Maesa lanceolata , Nuxia congesta and Dracaena afromontana . It was discovered growing on the thallus of the foliose lichen Crocodia cf. clathrata, which was itself growing on the stem of a woody vine. [3]
Taitaia aurea is a lichenicolous fungus, meaning it lives symbiotically with lichens. The fungus forms apothecioid ascomata, or fungal fruiting bodies, that break through the host lichen's thallus (its vegetative body). These ascomata can group together, sometimes ten or more budding from a single base. They start off closed and then open with the edges rolling outwards to reveal a salmon-red disc . The margin of the ascoma is golden yellow, earning the species its 'aurea' name. [3]
The hymenium, or fertile layer of the ascoma, comprises unitunicate , non-amyloid asci (sac-like structures in which spores are formed), and simple , septate paraphyses. The ascospores produced by Taitaia aurea are fusiform (spindle-shaped) and contain a single septum. [3]
The fungus is obligately lichenicolous, implying it exclusively grows on lichens, in this case, on the thalli of Crocodia cf. clathrata. The ascomata can burst through the host thallus without causing any discernible harm to the mycobiont (the fungal component of the lichen) or the photobiont (the photosynthetic component). [3]
At the time of its publication, Taitaia aurea was known only from two locations in Kenya, both within tropical lower-mountain forests. [3]
Inside the host lichen, the vegetative hyphae (filamentous structures) of Taitaia aurea can weave between the medullary hyphae of the host. They are slightly narrower than those of the host and can be traced for some distance. The ascomata of Taitaia aurea are closely associated with the internal cephalodia of the host, structures containing a nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium called Nostoc . While the fungus's vegetative hyphae are seen on the surfaces of the cephalodia, they do not appear to penetrate these structures. [3]
Lobaria is a genus of foliose lichens, formerly classified in the family Lobariaceae, but now placed in the Peltigeraceae. They are commonly known as "lung wort" or "lungmoss" as their physical shape somewhat resembles a lung, and their ecological niche is similar to that of moss.
The Arthoniales is the second largest order of mainly crustose lichens, but fruticose lichens are present as well. The order contains around 1500 species, while the largest order with lichenized fungi, the Lecanorales, contains more than 14000 species.
Lobaria pulmonaria is a large epiphytic lichen consisting of an ascomycete fungus and a green algal partner living together in a symbiotic relationship with a cyanobacterium—a symbiosis involving members of three kingdoms of organisms. Commonly known by various names like tree lungwort, lung lichen, lung moss, lungwort lichen, oak lungs or oak lungwort, it is sensitive to air pollution and is also harmed by habitat loss and changes in forestry practices. Its population has declined across Europe and L. pulmonaria is considered endangered in many lowland areas. The species has a history of use in herbal medicines, and recent research has corroborated some medicinal properties of lichen extracts.
The Gomphillaceae are a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Graphidales. Species in this family are found mostly in tropical regions.
The Mycocaliciaceae are a family of seven genera and about 90 species of fungi in the order Mycocaliciales.
Verrucariaceae is a family of lichens and a few non-lichenised fungi in the order Verrucariales. The lichens have a wide variety of thallus forms, from crustose (crust-like) to foliose (bushy) and squamulose (scaly). Most of them grow on land, some in freshwater and a few in the sea. Many are free-living but there are some species that are parasites on other lichens, while one marine species always lives together with a leafy green alga.
Abrothallus is a genus of lichenicolous fungi. It is the only genus in the monotypic family Abrothallaceae, which itself is the sole taxon in the order Abrothallales.
Pilophorus acicularis, commonly known as the nail lichen or the devil's matchstick lichen, is a species of matchstick lichen in the family Cladoniaceae.
Lichen morphology describes the external appearance and structures of a lichen. These can vary considerably from species to species. Lichen growth forms are used to group lichens by "vegetative" thallus types, and forms of "non-vegetative" reproductive parts. Some lichen thalli have the aspect of leaves ; others cover the substrate like a crust, others such as the genus Ramalina adopt shrubby forms, and there are gelatinous lichens such as the genus Collema.
Bruceomycetaceae is a small family of fungi in the order Lecanorales. It contains two genera, each of which contains a single species.
Peltigera rufescens, commonly known as the field dog lichen, is a species of terricolous (ground-dwelling), foliose lichen in the family Peltigeraceae. The common and widespread species has a cosmopolitan distribution.
Zwackhiomyces polischukii is a species of lichenicolous (lichen-eating) fungus in the family Xanthopyreniaceae. It occurs in Ukraine, where it parasitises the crustose lichens Bacidia fraxinea and B. rubella.
Buelliella lecanorae is a species of lichenicolous (lichen-eating) fungus in the class Dothideomycetes. It is found in a few locations in Estonia and in Crimea, where it grows parasitically on members of the Lecanora subfusca species group.
Opegrapha verseghyklarae is a little-known species of lichenicolous (lichen-eating) fungus in the family Opegraphaceae. It is found in the Russian Far East, where it grows on the thalli and apothecia of the crustose lichen Ochrolechia pallescens.
Pyrenidium is a genus of lichenicolous (lichen-dwelling) fungi. It is the only genus in the family Pyrenidiaceae. It has 13 species.
Abrothallus secedens is a species of lichenicolous fungus in the family Abrothallaceae. Found in Africa, South America, and the United States, it was formally described as a new species in 1994 by Swedish lichenologists Mats Wedin and Rolf Santesson. The type specimen was collected by the first author on the Martial Glacier in Ushuaia at an altitude of 550 m (1,800 ft), where it was found on the thallus of the foliose lichen Pseudocyphellaria dubia, which itself was growing on the base of a Nothofagus antarctica tree. It has also been collected in Chile, Kenya, and Alaska. The species epithet of the fungus, secedens refers to the two-celled ascospores that eventually separate into single-celled part spores. Known hosts for Abrothallus secedens include Crocodia aurata, Pseudocyphellaria dubia, P. mallota, P. obvoluta, and other Pseudocyphellaria lichens not identified to species.
Graphidales is an order of lichen-forming fungi in the class Lecanoromycetes. It contains 6 families, about 81 genera and about 2,228 species. Family Graphidaceae are the largest crustose family within Graphidales order comprising more than 2000 species, which are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of the world.
Capronia cogtii is a rare species of lichenicolous (lichen-dwelling) fungus in the family Herpotrichiellaceae. Found in northern Mongolia, it was described as a new species in 2019.
Plectocarpon galapagoense is a species of lichenicolous fungus in the family Lecanographaceae. Native to the Galápagos Islands, it grows on and within the ascomata and thallus of Sarcographa tricosa, a host lichen species. Although it appears to be a weak parasite, it may cause significant damage to the host lichen's reproductive structures.