Varicellaria velata
Synonyms
Parmelia velata Turner., Pertusaria obvelata Nyl., Pertusaria velata (Turner) Nyl.
Family
Pertusariaceae
Flora category
Lichen – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Lichens - Crustose
Current conservation status
2018 | Not Threatened | Qualifiers: SO
Brief description
Characterised by the corticolous/saxicolous habit; disc-like apothecia (occasionally 2-spored asci are found in NZ material, though generally asci have only 1 spore) with pruinose to sorediate discs, and the presence of lecanoric acid.
Distribution
South Island: Nelson (Cobb Dam, Flora Saddle, Maruia Springs, Lewis Pass), Canterbury (Craigieburn Range), Otago (Black Head, Green Island).
Widespread with a pantropical and temperate distribution. Known also from Europe, Asia, China, North and South America, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Australia.
Habitat
On bark of Fuscospora, and on coastal, basalt rocks.
Detailed description
Thallus greyish white to off-white, slightly cracked and areolate, surface smooth to slightly wrinkled, dull, without soredia or isidia. Apothecia disc-like, numerous, scattered or crowded, concolorous with thallus, 0.5–1 mm diam., discs pale to dark reddish brown, slightly to densely white-pruinose. Ascospores 1 per ascus (rarely 2 per ascus), ellipsoidal, smooth, thin-walled, 100–200(–275) × (10–)30–45 (–60) μm, wall to 5 μm thick.
Chemistry: K−, KC+ orange-red, C+ red, Pd−; containing lecanoric acid (major), gyrophoric acid (tr.), orsellinic acid (tr.), ±lichexanthone (tr. to major)
Similar taxa
This species is similar to V. cacuminum in having large ascospores in mono-spored asci, but differs, primarily, in its corticolous habit.
Substrate
Corticolous
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Marley Ford (3 October 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.