Search for: All records

Arthonia frostiicola and A. galligena are described as new to science based on collections from mountainous regions of southeastern North America. Arthonia frostiicola infects the saxicolous lichen Dirinaria frostii, producing emarginate black apothecia which erupt from within the host thallus. It is characterized by a dark hypothecium and 1-septate, obovoid ascospores which turn brownish and verruculose in age. It is known from five collections made in the southern Appalachian Mountains and Ozark Mountains in southeastern North America. Arthonia galligena produces galls in the thallus and apothecia of the corticolous lichens Lecanora masana and L. rugosella, and is apparently endemic to the high elevations of the southern Appalachian Mountains. It is characterized by a variably pigmented, pale to red-brown hypothecium and 2-septate, macrocephalic ascospores which turn brownish and verruculose in age. Keys to the species of Arthonia on Caliciales and Lecanoraceae are provided. 

Loxosporais a genus of crustose lichens containing 13 accepted species that can be separated into two groups, based on differences in secondary chemistry that correlate with differences in characters of the sexual reproductive structures (asci and ascospores). Molecular phylogenetic analyses recovered these groups as monophyletic and support their recognition as distinct genera that differ in phenotypic characters. Species containing 2’-O-methylperlatolic acid are transferred to the new genus,ChicitaeaGuzow-Krzem., Kukwa & Lendemer and four new combinations are proposed:C. assateaguensis(Lendemer) Guzow-Krzem., Kukwa & Lendemer,C. confusa(Lendemer) Guzow-Krzem., Kukwa & Lendemer,C. cristinae(Guzow-Krzem., Łubek, Kubiak & Kukwa) Guzow-Krzem., Kukwa & Lendemer andC. lecanoriformis(Lumbsch, A.W. Archer & Elix) Guzow-Krzem., Kukwa & Lendemer. The remaining species produce thamnolic acid and representLoxosporas.str. Haplotype analyses recovered sequences ofL. elatinain two distinct groups, one corresponding toL. elatinas.str. and one toPertusaria chloropolia, the latter being resurrected from synonymy ofL. elatinaand, thus, requiring the combination,L. chloropolia(Erichsen) Ptach-Styn, Guzow-Krzem., Tønsberg & Kukwa. Sequences ofL. ochrophaeawere found to be intermixed within the otherwise monophyleticL. elatinas.str. These two taxa, which differ in contrasting reproductive mode and overall geographic distributions, are maintained as distinct, pending further studies with additional molecular loci. Lectotypes are selected forLecanora elatina,Pertusaria chloropoliaand P. chloropolia f. cana. The latter is a synonym ofLoxospora chloropolia. New primers for the amplification of mtSSU are also presented. 

Lecidea varians is among the most common and abundant bark-dwelling crustose lichens in temperate eastern North America. As presently delimited, it is highly variable, including chemical and morphological diversity well beyond that currently accepted for most lichen species. The generic placement of L. varians has also been questioned for decades. It has long been recognized as aberrant in Lecidea and Pyrrhospora, excluded from Lecidella, and more recently transferred to Traponora. Drawing from the results of extensive chemical, molecular phylogenetic and morphological studies, we show that L. varians and its relatives represent a previously unrecognized lineage within the speciose lichen family Lecanoraceae. The lineage appears to occupy an isolated position, distinct from the aforementioned genera, and is newly described as the genus Xanthosyne (typified by L. varians). The chemical and morphological variation within L. varians is mirrored by, but not entirely correlated with, considerable molecular diversity. A new taxonomy is proposed for L. varians and its relatives to serve as a framework for future studies. Three species are recognized: X. varians (≡ Lecidea varians), common and widespread in parts of North America; X. granularis, a new species from the Atlantic Coast of eastern North America that differs morphologically from X. varians in having a leprose thallus; and X. sharnoffiorum, a new species also found mainly along the Atlantic Coast of eastern North America, which has a coarsely granular, non-leprose thallus and produces a unique, unidentified xanthone. Multiple well-supported lineages were recovered within X. varians that correlate to varying degrees with chemical and morphological variability, as well as geographic distribution. Eight subspecies are recognized to accommodate the variation within X. varians: X. varians subsp. exigua comb. nov. (≡ Lecidea exigua) characterized by the presence of atranorin and a consistent set of three xanthones, is widespread in southern Europe and western North America (coastal California); X. varians subsp. varians (≡ Lecidea varians) is distributed mainly in northeastern North America and produces thuringione and arthothelin; X. varians subsp. morsei subsp. nov. is morphologically and chemically variable, with one chemotype (thiophanic acid) with a northeastern distribution, and the other with a unique and unidentified xanthone, found mainly in the interior U.S.A.; X. varians subsp. obscura subsp. nov. occurs mainly in the central U.S.A. and North Temperate regions, produces a unique, unidentified xanthone and generally has black apothecia with green epihymenial pigments; X. varians subsp. pseudomorsei subsp. nov. and X. varians subsp. submorsei subsp. nov. resemble X. varians subsp. morsei but differ in molecular sequence characters; X. varians subsp. subtilis comb. nov. (≡ Lecidea subtilis) and X. varians subsp. subexigua subsp. nov. occur in the Appalachian Mountains, the former producing atranorin and the latter lacking atranorin, both with thiophanic acid with or without other xanthones. In an addendum, Lecidella subviridis is discussed with respect to the genus Xanthosyne. An identification key is provided for all species and their subspecies within Xanthosyne. 

Species of Cetrelia delimited based on chemical and morphological characters have been largely supported by subsequent phylogenetic analysis of molecular data. While a robust, taxonomically well sampled global phylogeny for Cetrelia exists, geographic sampling to date has focused on Europe and East Asia. Here we use extensive field, herbarium and laboratory study to examine the distributions and identities of the taxa occuring in eastern North America. The presence of three species in the region is confirmed with molecular data (C. chicitae, C. monachorum, C. olivetorum). While a fourth species (C. cetrarioides) also occurs based on phenotypic data; efforts to obtain sequences were unsuccessful. The subpopulations of Cetrelia species in the region have contrasting frequency and distribution patterns relative to disjunct European subpopulations. Quantification of frequency of Cetrelia occurrence compared to an index of habitat quality revealed that all species have a strong affinity to high quality habitats, reflecting broader connection between lichen species richness and disturbance found in numerous previous studies. The trends detected in Cetrelia are unlikely restricted to this genus and we suggest that large-scale detailed quantitative studies in local-scale occurrence over time are needed to address significant gaps in knowledge to advance lichen conservation. 

Arthonia ligniariella is reported for the first time from eastern North America based on a collection growing on lignum in North Carolina, U.S.A. Biatora appalachensis, an Appalachian endemic, is shown to be widespread throughout the Appalachian Mountains, primarily at high elevations. The only report of Fellhanera parvula from North America (Tennessee, U.S.A.) is considered to be F. bouteillei. Fellhanera subtilis, previously reported in North America from the Pacific Northwest, is reported for the first time from eastern North America (southern Appalachian Mountains). Gyalideopsis mexicana, previously reported in North America from the Yukon, Canada and New Mexico, U.S.A. is newly reported from eastern North America (southern Appalachian Mountains, North Carolina, U.S.A.). Lepra ouahensis, a sorediate species with lichexanthone and stictic acid, is reported from disjunct areas of the southern Appalachian Mountains and the Southeastern Coastal Plain. Its distribution is compared to the lichexanthone producing chemotypes of L. trachythallina and Varicellaria velata. Rockefellera crossophylla, a rare species considered extinct in Pennsylvania, U.S.A. is reported to be extant in that state. Psoronactis dilleniana is newly reported from North America from high elevations of the central and southern Appalachian Mountains (North Carolina and Virginia U.S.A.). Xenonectriella streimannii is newly reported for North America based on a collection found growing on Anaptychia palmulata in Georgia, U.S.A.