Arthonia cinereopruinosa
Synonyms
Arthonia lirellaeformis
Family
Arthoniaceae
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 habit: the grey-white, grey-green to lilac-grey granular or powdery thallus delimited by a thin, black prothallus; lirellate, oblong or elongate, simple or branched, blue-grey-pruinose apothecia; pyriform to broadly cuneate-oblong, 4-septate ascospores, becoming red-brown at maturity, 14–20 × 5–8 μm; and psoromic acid (K+ yellow).
Distribution
North Island: Auckland (Domain), Wellington. South Island: Otago (Cameron Flat near Makarora, Leith Valley, Mt Cargill) (Galloway 2007). Also observed in the Waikatō (next to Waikatō River at Rangiriri) (Hutchison 2022).
Known also from Europe, Scandinavia, North America, Tasmania.
Habitat
On dry, shaded bark of Nothofagus [Lophozonia] menziesii in humid, riverine habitats, and on dryish vertical scales of old Dacrydium cupressinum in humid forest. A species of dry, rough bark of mature trees in old-growth forest or forest remnants. Commonly associating with lichen taxa of Calicales, Chrysothrix candelaris, Lepraria incana, Megalaria grossa, Opegrapha agelaeoides and Sagenidium molle.
Also observed on common alder, next to the Waikatō River (Hutchison 2022).
Detailed description
Thallus crustose, thin, grey-white or grey-blue, to lilac-grey, or grey-green, smooth, continuous to granular, powdery, sometimes delimited at margins by a thin, black prothalline line. Apothecia brownish, lirelliform, oblong or elongate, simple, or branched, heavily blue-grey-pruinose, easily distinguished from thallus. Hymenium colourless; epithecium brown-black. Asci broadly clavate. Ascospores pyriform to broadly cuneate-oblong, 4-septate, the end cell noticeably enlarged, 14–20 × 5–8 μm, colourless at first becoming red-brown or brownish at maturity.
Chemistry: K+ yellow; containing psoromic acid.
Substrate
Corticolous
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Melissa Hutchison (15 June 2023). 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.
Hutchison M. 2022: iNaturalist observation. https://inaturalist.nz/observations/109993810. Date accessed: 15 June 2023.