Parmotrema robustum
Synonyms
Parmelia robusta
Family
Parmeliaceae
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 the corticolous habit; the loosely adnate, membranaceous thallus; broad lobes with sparse cilia; marginal soralia on short, incised laciniae; and protocetraric acid in the medulla.
Distribution
North Island: Northland, Auckland, East Cape (Mahia). South Island: Nelson.
Pantropical. Known also from the Atlantic coast of Europe from Portugal to Ireland, from Macaronesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, E Australia and New Caledonia
Habitat
Forest
Detailed description
Thallus loosely adnate, membranaceous, 10–20 cm diam. Lobes rounded, 10–15 mm wide, margins entire, ciliate; cilia sparse, 0.5–1.5 mm long, best seen in lobe axils. Upper surface grey to greenish grey, smooth, matt, faintly white-maculate (×10 lens) at margins, becoming reticulate-cracked centrally, sorediate, without isidia. Soralia marginal, short, linear on small, incised marginal laciniae, the sorediate laciniae becoming convolute. Soredia white, granular. Lower surface black, with a wide, smooth, naked, pale-brown, marginal zone, rhizinate centrally. Rhizines sparse, simple, black. Apothecia and pycnidia not seen.
Chemistry: Cortex K+ yellow; medulla K+ dingy yellow→dirty brown, C−, P+ orange-red; containing atranorin, chloroatranorin, protocetraric acid (major) with or without unidentified fatty acids.
Substrate
Corticolous
Etymology
robustum: Sturdy
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Marley Ford (5 August 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.