Peltigera neopolydactyla
Family
Peltigeraceae
Flora category
Lichen – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Lichens - Foliose
Current conservation status
2018 | Not Threatened | Qualifiers: SO
Brief description
Characterised by the terricolous/muscicolous habit; large, glabrous lobes with a ±billowed or bullate upper surface (best seen towards centre), entire margins; buff to dark-brown or black, flattened veins below (1.5–3(–4) mm wide), black or brown-black, simple to fasciculate rhizines (3–7(–10) mm long), and long, acicular spores (62.5–95 × 2.5–3 μm).
Distribution
North Island: Northland (Three Kings Islands to Kaipara Harbour). Auckland (Waitakere Ranges), South Auckland (Motuhora Island), Wellington (Tiritea). South Island: Westland (Fox Glacier, McArthur Flats Arawata River), Canterbury (Woodend Beach), Otago (West Matukituki, Old Man Range, Rock & Pillar Range, Maungatua, Swampy Summit, Taieri Mouth, Akatore), Southland (Milford Sound, Manapouri, Pukerau, Awarua Bay).
It is circumpolar, boreal to arctic in the Northern Hemisphere where it occurs in North America, Europe and Asia. New Zealand records are the first for the Southern Hemisphere.
Habitat
On damp, often peaty soils, among mosses and debris or on rotting logs below forest trees, or in scrub associations; on damp rocks and among grass on roadside banks; among Sphagnum in bogs, s.l. to 1300 m.
Detailed description
Thallus large, orbicular to spreading, 3–8(–15) cm diam. Lobes linear to irregular 0.5–1.5 cm wide, 2–6 cm long. Margins entire, wavy, to minutely and irregularly notched or torn, slightly thickened below, without phyllidia or tomentum, rarely with tomentose apothecial initials. Upper surface glabrous, dark blue-black or slatey grey-black when wet, pale-grey to chestnut-brown or red-brown when dry, glossy or matt, smooth, undulate to ±billowed or bullate towards centre. Lower surface tomentose, whitish or buff at margins, soon becoming greyish, brown or blackened centrally. Veins broad, flattened to slightly raised, 1.5–3(–4) mm wide, greyish or grey-brown at margins, black or brown-black centrally, anastomosing; interstices white, lenticular to oval. Rhizines brown to black, simple to fasciculate, 3–7(–10) mm long. Apothecia common, erect, saddle-shaped; disc red-brown, matt, epruinose, inrolled; margins pale-buff, roughened, warted, soon disappearing, pale-buff, ridged, tomentose below. Ascospores colourless, acicular, 3–7-septate, (62.5–)70–90(–95) × 2.5–3 μm.
Chemistry: Tenuiorin, methyl gyrophorate, peltidactylin, dolichorrhizin, zeorin and unidentified triterpenoids (minor).
Similar taxa
It is distinguished from P. polydactylon by the wider, flatter veins and the longer spores.
Substrate
Terricolous
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Marley Ford (3 September 2021). Brief description, Distribution, Habitat, Features, and Similar taxa 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.