Usnea subeciliata
Synonyms
Usnea pulverulenta f. subeciliata Motyka
Family
Parmeliaceae
Flora category
Lichen – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Lichens - Fruticose
Current conservation status
2018 | Data Deficient | Qualifiers: OL, SO
Brief description
Characterised by the corticolous habit; the shrubby, greenish grey thallus, 5-7 cm tall; terete, tapering branches wih numerous, dense papillae; scattered tubercles often with pseudocyphellae; numerous, excavate to plane or protuberant soralia; and fatty acids and norstictic or salazinic acids (K+ yellow→red) in the medulla.
Distribution
North Island: Kaipara, Waikato, South Auckland (Slipper Island).
Known also from Australia and Tasmania, and East Africa.
Habitat
On pōhutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa) and tanekaha (Phyllocladus trichomanoides) bark.
Detailed description
Thallus shrubby, erect, 5–7 cm tall, pale-green to green or grey-green, branching subdichotomous to irregular, pale to partly black at base. Branches terete, 0.5–1.5 mm diam., primary branches partially inflated, rarely faveolate, apices tapering, somewhat curved. Branchlets absent. Fibrils numerous, fine, occurring along length of branch. Papillae numerous, dense. Tubercles scattered. Pseudocyphellae mainly on tubercles but a few on cortex. Soralia numerous, excavate to plane or protuberant, very large and coalescing towards apices. Medulla lax to moderately dense; axis ¼–⅓ width of branch, hyaline. Apothecia not seen.
Chemistry: Thallus K+ yellow→orange; containing norstictic or salazinic acids and fatty acids.
Similar taxa
Usnea oncodes is similar but U. subeciliata has soralia on secondary, tertiary and terminal branches, not present on primary branches; dense papillae, compared with soralia apical and subapical on terminal branches and branchlets; and papillae, if present, are sparse to moderate.
Substrate
Corticolous
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Marley Ford (2 August 2022). Brief description, Distribution, Habitat, Features and Similar taxa sections copied from Galloway (1985) & 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.