Pseudocyphellaria physciospora
Synonyms
Diphaeosticta physciospora, Phaeosticta physciospora, Sticta cellulifera, Sticta fossulata subsp. physciospora, Sticta physciospora
Family
Lobariaceae
Flora category
Lichen – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Lichens - Foliose
Current conservation status
2018 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: DP, SO
Brief description
Characterised by broad, rather divergent lobes, di- or trichotomously branching, with entire margins thickened above and below, but lacking pseudocyphellae; upper surface is matt, reticulate-faveolate, without isidia, maculae, phyllidia, pseudocyphellae or soredia; apothecia are marginal and laminal, pedicellate, the disc red-brown, epruinose, the exciple red-brown, coarsely corrugate; it has a white medulla; a green photobiont; a pale-buff or whitish, velvety, short-tomentose lower surface with a prominent glabrous marginal zone and with minute, inconspicuous yellow pseudocyphellae; it has a chemistry containing several hopane triterpenoids, tenuiorin, norstictic and salazinic acids, and traces of the pigments calycin and pulvinic dilactone present in the pseudocyphellae.
Distribution
Stewart Island: (Port Pegasus, Tommy Island). Auckland Islands: (Enderby Island, Ranui Cove). Campbell Island: (Mt Azimuth, Lyell Ridge, Mt Sorensen, Filhol Peak).
Known also from Juan Fernandez Island, Chile.
Habitat
An epiphyte of coastal scrub and coastal forest trees, and of subalpine scrub in tussuck grassland.
Detailed description
Thallus orbicular to irregularly spreading, 5–15 cm diam., closely to loosely attached centrally, margins free, corticolous. Lobes divergent, di- or trichotomously branched, rather broad, 5–10(–20) mm wide, discrete and truncate at apices, imbricate centrally, sinuses rounded. Margins entire, rounded, distinctly ridged above, without projecting pseudocyphellae, markedly thickened below. Upper surface olive-green to yellow-green when moist, often suffused red-brown towards apices, olivaceous, brownish when dry, strongly to weakly reticulate-faveolate, interconnecting ridges prominent, broad, rather flat, matt or glossy, without soredia, isidia, phyllidia, maculae, papillae or pseudocyphellae. Medulla white. Photobiont green. Lower surface glabrous and glossy in a broad to narrow marginal zone, tomentose centrally, occasionally to margins, ridged-bullate centrally. Pseudocyphellae yellow, rather inconspicuous, sparse to numerous, widely scattered, raised, verruciform, 0.1 mm diam., or less, rarely to 0.2 mm, decorticate area flat, pinprick-like. Apothecia sessile to pedicellate at maturity, marginal and laminal, rounded, 0.5–4(–5) mm diam., deeply cupuliform at first, becoming shallowly concave at maturity, disc dark red-brown to black, glossy, epruinose, smooth, margins scabrid-areolate, pale pinkish to red-brown, conspicuously dentate-stellate in old fruits, exciple pale-pinkish to red-brown at margins of disc, coarsely corrugate or scabrid-areolate. Epithecium dark red-brown, violet-purple in K. Ascospores brown, 1-septate, fusiform to oval-ellipsoidal, (21–)23–29(–32) × 7–9 μm. Pycnidia common to rare, scattered laminally, mainly on thallus ridges, black, minute, 0.1 mm diam., or less, punctate-impressed.
Chemistry: Methyl evernate, tenuiorin, methyl gyrophorate, gyrophoric acid, 7β-acetoxyhopan-22-ol, hopane-7β,22-diol, hopane-6α,7β,22-triol, norstictic, salazinic, consalazinic, stictic, cryptostictic, connorstictic and constictic acids, and traces of pulvinic dilactone and calycin.
Substrate
Corticolous
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Marley Ford (6 October 2021). 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.