Lepra muricata
Family
Pertusariaceae
Flora category
Lichen – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Lichens - Crustose
Current conservation status
2018 | Data Deficient | Qualifiers: OL, SO
Brief description
Characterised by the corticolous habit; the densely isidiate thallus; the absence of apothecia; and the presence of stictic acid.
Distribution
North Island: Northland (Mangamuka River) (Hokianga).
Known also from Mauritius, Papua New Guinea, and Queensland.
Habitat
On lowland trees. Still very poorly known in New Zealand.
Detailed description
Thallus corticolous, isidiate, forming extensive creamy-white to greenish patches of variable thickness, when thicker it is glossy, corticate, areolate. Isidia numerous, concolorous with thallus, sometimes densely crowded but also ±scattered, simple, rarely branched or becoming coralloid, 0.2–1 mm tall, 0.05–0.1 mm diam. Apothecia unknown.
Chemistry: K+ yellow, C−, KC+ yellow, Pd+ orange; containing stictic acid with traces of constictic and cryptostictic acids.
Similar taxa
Similar to Pertusaria barbatica but with K- chemisty.
Substrate
Corticolous
Etymology
muricata: Furnished with numerous short hard excrescences
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Marley Ford (2 June 2022). Brief description, Distribution, Habitat, and Features sections copied from Galloway (2007).
References and further reading
Galloway D.J. 2007: Flora of New Zealand: Lichens, including lichen-forming and lichenicolous fungi. 2nd edition. Lincoln, Manaaki Whenua Press. 2261 pp.