| Verrucaria oulankaensis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Eurotiomycetes |
| Order: | Verrucariales |
| Family: | Verrucariaceae |
| Genus: | Verrucaria |
| Species: | V. oulankaensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Verrucaria oulankaensis Pykälä & Myllys (2017) | |
Verrucaria oulankaensis is a rare species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found in north-eastern Finland, where it occurs on calcareous rocks on river shores.
The lichen was formally described as a new species in 2017 by Juha Pykälä and Leena Myllys. The type specimen was collected by the first author along the shore of the Oulankajoki river in Oulanka National Park (Koillismaa); there, at an altitude of 180 m (590 ft), it was found growing on a dolomite rock outcrop jutting out from a southwest-facing rock wall. The species epithet oulankaensis refers to the predominance of collections from the Oulanka area, which the authors call "one of the lichenologically most important areas in Finland". [1] The type specimen is kept in the collections of the mycological herbaria of the Botanical Museum of the Finnish Museum of Natural History. [2]
The colour of the crust-like thallus Verrucaria oulankaensis ranges from pale brown to brownish grey, medium brown or dark brown, and usually grey with a pruinose covering. It has a dark brown prothallus. The perithecia are immersed in the thallus, and measure 0.12–0.27 mm in diameter, and have a dark ostiole (pore) that is often inconspicuous. The exciple (the ring-shaped tissue layer surrounding the hymenium) measures 0.15–0.25 mm and has a dark brown wall. Algal cells are 5–10 μm wide. The asci contain eight spores and measure about 50–61 by 19–24 μm. Ascospores are 16.2–19.3 by 7.7–9.1 μm and lack a perispore (a colorless, often gelatinous enveloping layer). [1]
Verrucaria oulankaensis grows on calcareous rocks, and all collections have been made from rivers shores – a particular habitat that is rare in Finland. The lichen is known to occur only in Oulanka area of northeastern Finland. A common lichen associate in its habitat is Staurothele areolata . Other rare lichens occurring in this area are Nephroma helveticum and Peltigera retifoveata . [1]
Oulanka National Park is a national park in the Northern Ostrobothnia and Lapland regions of Finland, covering 270 square kilometres (104 sq mi). The park was established in 1956 and was expanded in 1982 and 1989. It borders the Paanajärvi National Park in Russia. The first inhabitants in the area were Sami people from Lapland who lived here until the end of the 17th century, which was when they had to give way to Finnish settlers. Although hunting, fishing and later farming was the primary occupation of the people who lived there, today the most notable activity in Oulanka is tourism. From the 1930s, the Finnish Tourist Association kept boats on the river and renovated the wooden cabins found across the park for accommodation purposes. These cabins can be used free of charge by any hikers in the area, given that they follow some basic guidelines and rules regarding the state of the cabins, the wood supply, and protecting the surrounding nature.
Orvo Vitikainen is a Finnish lichenologist. He entered the University of Helsinki in 1961, from where he obtained a Candidate of Philosophy degree in 1966, and a Licentiate of Philosophy in 1971. He later earned a Ph.D. from this institution in 1994, under the supervision of Teuvo Ahti. Between the years 1961 and 1981 he was a junior curator of cryptogams at the University of Helsinki Botanical Garden, and then from 1983 to 2004 he was the head of the lichen herbarium. Here he managed the internationally valuable collections of the early lichenologists Erik Acharius and William Nylander. He has collected thousands of specimens for the herbarium from various locations in Finland, but also internationally, including Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Russian Karelia, Scotland, Austria, Italy, Hungary, Croatia, Montenegro, Tanzania, Kenya, British Columbia, and Brazil. In 1992–1994, he was a scientist of the Finnish Academy in the Ahti research group.
Rainar Alarik Hakulinen was a Finnish lichenologist and schoolteacher. He was noted as an expert on the lichen family Candelariaceae, and was known for his numerous phytogeographical publications about the boreal and arctic lichens of Finland, Northern Norway, and Russian Karelia.
Atla is a genus of crustose lichens in the family Verrucariaceae. It has nine species that grow on rocks or on soil.
Atla oulankaensis is a rare species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It has been recorded in Finland and in the Canadian arctic, growing on calciferous rock and on high-pH soil.
Atla tibelliorum is a rare species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) in the family Verrucariaceae. Found in Finland and the United States, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by Juha Pykälä and Leena Myllys. The type specimen was collected by the first author near Toskaljärvi lake ; there, in a calcareous alpine grassland at an altitude of 730 m (2,400 ft), the lichen was found growing on dolomite pebbles. It has also been collected from Franklin Bluffs, Alaska, where it was growing on high-pH soil in dwarf shrub tundra. The species epithet tibelliorum honours "Sanja and Leif Tibell, the mother and father of the genus Atla".
Atla vitikainenii is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) in the family Verrucariaceae. Found in northern Finland, it was formally described as a new species in 2016 by Juha Pykälä and Leena Myllys. The type specimen was collected by the first author from Oulanka National Park, at an altitude of 185 m (607 ft); there, it was found growing on pebbles in a northeast-facing dolomite rock outcrop. The species epithet honours Finnish lichenologist Orvo Vitikainen, who, according to the authors, "has contributed in many ways to our knowledge of the taxonomy, ecology and biogeography of Finnish lichens".
Verrucaria vitikainenii is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found in Finland, where it occurs on calcareous rock outcrops.
Verrucaria ahtii is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found in Finland, Lithuania, Russia, and Switzerland, where it occurs on calcareous pebbles.
Wahlenbergiella tavaresiae is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. Known from several locations in the San Francisco Bay area of the United States, it is a marine lichen that inhabits intertidal zones, and as such is immersed in seawater on a regular basis. Associated algal species include the red algae Hildenbrandia and Mastocarpus papillatus, and the brown algae Pelvetiopsis and Fucus. Petroderma maculiforme, a brown alga, is the photobiont partner in the lichen.
Verrucaria muralis is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling, crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is a common species with an almost cosmopolitan distribution, occurring in an altitudinal range extending from the lowlands to the subalpine zone. It grows on calcareous rocks and walls. It was first formally described as a new species in 1803 by Swedish lichenologist Erik Acharius.
Hydropunctaria amphibia is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. One of several marine lichens in the genus Hydropunctaria, is widely distributed across Europe, extending from Norway to the Mediterranean and the Iberian coasts, and has a nearly ubiquitous presence along the Catalan coast of Spain. In North America, it is found along the Atlantic Coast from Nova Scotia to the Boston Harbor islands, where its presence in low-pollution areas indicates its potential as a bioindicator for marine lichen community health, and on the west coast in British Columbia, particularly in the Gwaii Haanas's upper littoral fringe. The black, crust-like thallus grows on seashore rocks – both siliceous rocks and limestone – in the lower supralittoral zone, an area also known as the splash zone. Originally described more than two centuries ago as a species of Verrucaria, Hydropunctaria amphibia sets itself apart from other species in Hydropunctaria through the distinct shape of the perithecium apex, which is either flat-topped or scalloped, in contrast to the typically rounded or immersed apex seen in its relatives.
Verrucaria bifurcata is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found in southern Finland.
Verrucaria cavernarum is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found in Finland.
Verrucaria difficilis is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found in Finland.
Verrucaria fuscozonata is a rare species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is only known to occur in a single location in northeastern Finland.
Verrucaria kuusamoensis is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is found within a small region of northeastern Finland.
Verrucaria subdevergens is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It occurs in northeastern Finland.
Verrucaria vacillans is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae. It is only known to occur in the Enontekiö Lapland region of northwestern Finland.