Vermilacinia, a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Ramalinaceae, is a yellow-green fruticose type of lichen with about 30 species that grow on rocks, trees, and soil within the fog zone along the Pacific Coast of North America and South America. The genus name refers to the thallus being divided into narrow worm-like (vermis) branches (lacinia);the latter part of the name (lacinia) generally applied in descriptions and taxonomic keys such as exemplified in a key to Sonoran Desert species of Ramalina.
Vermilacinia acicularis is a fruticose lichen that occurs in the Channel Islands of California. The type specimen was collected from San Clemente Island. Other specimens have been collected from Santa Barbara Island and Anacapa Island.
Vermilacinia cedrosensis is a species of pale fruticose lichen that is endemic to Baja California, Mexico.
Vermilacinia ceruchoides is a fruticose lichen found on rock faces of cliffs or boulders, sometimes growing among mosses, usually near the ocean, ranging in distribution from Marin County, California to San Vicente on the northern peninsula of Baja California, and in the Channel Islands.
Vermilacinia johncasadyi is a rare fruticose lichen, found on rocks along the Pacific Coast of Baja California peninsula on Punta Cono, and directly westward across the ocean on Cedros Island.
Vermilacinia laevigata is a fruticose lichen that occurs in the fog zone along the Pacific Coast of the California Floristic Province from Marin County, California to 15 miles south of Misión San Vicente Ferrer in Baja California
Vermilacinia ligulata is an infrequent lichen found along the foggy Pacific Coast of Baja California in rock-walled narrow arroyos, on rocky peninsulas and on ridges within the Northern Vizcaíno Desert region, ranging from Punta Cono to just north of Punta Canoas, and along the east coast of Cedros Island. The species was first collected in May 1985 in the southern part of the northern peninsula of Baja California, about 100 km north of Guerrero Negro, 400 meters inland from the ocean on rocky walls with a northern exposure in a narrow estuary. The type is from the same locality but collected one year later, 19 May 1986.
Vermilacinia paleoderma is a pale yellow-green fruticose lichen that occurs commonly along the fog zone of the Pacific Coast of Northern Vizcaíno Desert region of Baja Californica and occasionally in the Chaparral Islands of California.
Vermilacinia polymorpha is a fruticose lichen infrequently found on Santa Catalina Island in the Channel Islands of California and along the mainland coast in Ventura and Orange counties. It has also been indicated to occur south into northwestern Baja California without reference to specimens to support its range extension, and shown to occur on the Vizcaíno Peninsula in central Baja California on a distribution map in a lichen flora, without reference to specimen data; however, specimen data from other sources indicate it does occur as far south as Punta Santa Rosalillita on the main peninsula of Baja California, and also reported from Guadalupe Island.
Vermilacinia procera is a fruticose lichen of local occurrences on rocks near the sea along the Pacific Coast from San Francisco California to the Channel Islands, and to Punta Escarpada in Baja California. The species is also reported to occur further south to the Vizcaíno Peninsula and on Cedros Island, but these reports are controversial in view of different interpretations of the species that include V. pumila and V. paleoderma that were not recognized at the time V. procera was described ; for example, a specimen collected on Guadalupe Island by Weber and MCoy (L-3605, COLO that was cited by Phillip Rundel and Peter Bowler in 1994 as belonging to Niebla procera, whereas in a revision of the genus by Richard Spjut in 1996, it was cited as belonging to Vermilacinia paleoderma. Both authorities generally agree to some extent on the description of the species and its geographical range within the California Floristic Province.
Vermilacinia pumila is a whitish-green fruticose lichen that occurs in fog areas along the Pacific Coast and offshore islands of North America. The species epithet pumila refers to the dwarf form of the thallus, in contrast to V. combeoides.
Vermilacinia reptilioderma is a rare fruticose lichen found on the Vizcaíno Peninsula and Cedros Island of Baja California. The epithet, reptilioderma, is in regard to the outer surface of the cortex appearing like the skin of a reptile, especially the brown snake, Pseudechis australis, the color of the thallus cortex often turning brown when stored in a herbarium.
Vermilacinia rigida is a dark green, rare fruticose lichen that occurs in fog areas along the Pacific Coast of Baja California, known only from two locations about 100 km north of Guerrero Negro. The epithet, rigida, is in regard to its stiff thallus branches.
Vermilacinia tuberculata is a fruticose lichen known only from Morro Bay along the Pacific Coast of California The epithet tuberculata is a reference to the tuberculate surface of the lichen.
Vermilacinia varicosa is a fruticose lichen known from two islands along the Pacific Coast of central Baja California, Isla San Roque located just off the southern Vizcaíno Peninsula west of Bahía Asuncón and Cedros Island where found on precipitous rocks along the northwest coast. The epithet, varicosa, is in reference to the unusually dilated type of branch in the genus. The lichen was first collected by Joseph Nelson Rose on 15 March 1911 during the Albatross Expedition. His lichen specimens had been kept separate from the mounted and filed lichen collections in the herbarium at the Smithsonian Institution, Department of Botany, US) loose in brown standard herbarium paper, and were made available to Richard Spjut sometime after 1986 while he was undertaking a revision of the genus Niebla
Niebla eburnea is a fruticose lichen that grows on rocks along the foggy Pacific Coast of North America, from Mendocino County in California south to near Punta Santa Rosalillita in Baja California, and also in the Channel Islands. The epithet, eburnea is in reference to the ivory like appearance of the cortex.
Niebla flabellata is a fruticose lichen that grows on rocks along the foggy Pacific Coast of Baja California in the Northern Vizcaíno Desert, from San Fernando Canyon to the northern shore of the Vizcaíno Peninsula west to Cedros Island. The epithet, flabellata is in reference to the flattened branches of the thallus.
Niebla infundibula is a fruticose lichen that grows on rocks along the Pacific Coast in the Channel Islands of California and in Baja California on Guadalupe Island, and on the main peninsula in the southern region of the Northern Vizcaíno Desert on a ridge south of Punta Negra. The epithet, infundibula, is in reference to the funnel shape of the thallus branches.
Niebla isidiosa is a fruticose lichen known only from Guadalupe Island. The epithet, isidiosa is in reference to isidia (isidium) on the thallus.
Niebla limicola is a fruticose lichen that grows on barren mud flats and on sand among salt scrub along the Pacific Coast of the Vizcaíno Desert, of Baja California from San Vicente Canyon to Scammon’s Lagoon. The epithet, limicola is in reference to the thallus growing on barren (alkali) soil.
