Usnea poliothrix

Usnea poliothrix
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Fungi
Division:	Ascomycota
Class:	Lecanoromycetes
Order:	Lecanorales
Family:	Parmeliaceae
Genus:	Usnea
Species:	U. poliothrix
Binomial name
Usnea poliothrix Kremp. (1874)

Usnea poliothrix is an irregular, orange species of Usnea , a common fruticose lichen. ^[1] It has soralia with prominent isidiofibril growth. ^[2] Its orange cortex is very fragile, and often scarred by the marks of lost isidiofibrils. ^[1] Although often characterized in literature as U. poliotrix, it was officially named U. poliothrix in 1874 by German lichenologist August von Krempelhuber. ^[3]

Habitat

U. poliothrix is native to Madagascar, and is rarely found on the continents, and when so, in South America or Australia. ^[4] Isolates may also be found in Southern-most North America. ^[2] Evidence may suggest that this species was once prevalent across dry areas of the continents, and that the Galapagos Islands may serve as a final remaining location where U. poliothrix is a strong competitor. ^[1]

See also

• List of Usnea species

References

1. Truong, Camille; Bungartz, Frank; Clerc, Philippe (2011). "The lichen genus Usnea (Parmeliaceae) in the tropical Andes and the Galapagos: species with a red-orange cortical or subcortical pigmentation" . The Bryologist. 114 (3): 477–503. doi:10.1639/0007-2745-114.3.477. ISSN   0007-2745. JSTOR   41289807. S2CID   83756095.
2. "CNALH - Usnea poliothrix". lichenportal.org. Retrieved 2021-05-29.
3. "Index Fungorum - Names Record". www.indexfungorum.org. Retrieved 2021-05-29.
4. Bungartz, Frank; Truong, Camille; Herrera-Campos, Maria de los Angeles; Clerc, Philippe (October 2018). "The Genus Usnea (Parmeliaceae, Lecanoromycetes) in the Galapagos Islands" . Herzogia. 31 (p1): 571–629. doi:10.13158/heia.31.1.2018.571. ISSN   0018-0971. S2CID   198160067.