Lichinella stipatula Nyl.

Bull. Soc. Linn. Normandie, sér. 2, 6: 301, 1872.
Synonyms: Psorotichia isidiosa Werner?
Description: Thallus microfruticose, black, of irregularly cylindrical, irregularly furcate, 0.5-3 mm long, 0.02-0.1 mm thick branches attached by bundles of rhizohyphae, forming regular to mostly irregular, 2-8 mm wide and 2-3 mm tall cushions which are often almost contiguous, giving the impression of a rimose-areolate crust. Central part of branches with a loose, fountain-like hyphal strand consisting of 1-2 rows of 2-3 µm thick hyphae with cylindrical cells, the peripheral parts made up of hyphae with more or less isodiametrical, 2-4 µm wide cells, encircling the photobiont cells. Apothecia thallinocarps, hemiangiocarpous, the ascogonia arising freely beneath the thallus surface, terminal on tips of branches, 0.2-0.3 mm across, with a flat to convex or rarely concave, rough disc, and a thin to thick thalline margin. Thalline exciple up to 50 µm wide; epithecium discontinuous, with scarce clusters of cyanobacterial cells penetrating in a wedge-like form into the hymenium; hymenium colourless, 55-75(-90) µm high, K/I+ blue turning rapidly reddish brown or wine-red, the upper part with groups of photobiont cells intruding between the asci, covered by a more or less continuous layer of sterile thalline tissue; paraphyses 2-3 µm thick, capitate; subhymenium colourless, 20-25 µm thick, K/I+ blue. Asci (16-)24-36(-48)-spored, subcylindrical to obclavate, prototunicate, with a thin, one-layered, non-amyloid wall, an amyloid external apical cap, and passive spore discharge via apical rupturing, Lichina-type. Ascospores 1-celled, hyaline, ellipsoid, (5-)7-9(-10) x 3-4.5 µm. Pycnidia terminal or lateral, globose. Conidia fusiform, c. 3 x 1 µm. Photobiont cyanobacterial, chroococcoid, of a few cells measuring 7-14 x 5-10 µm, penetrated by haustoria and surrounded by a brownish gelatinous sheath. Spot tests: all negative. Chemistry: without lichen substances.
Growth form: Fruticose

Substrata: rocks
Photobiont: cyanobacteria, coccaceous (e.g. Gloeocapsa)
Reproductive strategy: mainly sexual
Subcontinental: restricted to areas with a dry-subcontinental climate (e.g. dry Alpine valleys, parts of Mediterranean Italy)
On otherwise dry surfaces with short periods of water seepage after rain

Commonnes-rarity: (info)

Alpine belt: absent
Subalpine belt: absent
Montane belt: very rare
Dry submediterranean belt: very rare
Humid submediterranean belt: rather common
Padanian area: extremely rare

pH of the substrata:

12345
info

Solar irradiation:

12345
info

Aridity:

12345
info

Eutrophication:

12345
info

Poleotolerance:

0123
info

Altitudinal distribution:

123456
info

Rarity

absent
extremely rare
very rare
rare
rather rare
rather common
common
very common
extremely common
Loading data...
Occurrence data
Predictive map

P.L. Nimis CC BY-SA 4.0
TSB 20112


P.L. Nimis; Owner: Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste
Herbarium: TSB (20112)
2001/12/09


Source: Prieto M., Wedin M., Schultz M. 2024. Phylogeny, evolution and a re-classification of the Lichinomycetes. Studies in Mycology, 109: 595-655. - CC BY-NC-ND
Lichinella stipatula, fruticulose or dwarf-fruticose with short, erect branchlets (Schultz 16610b). Scale bar: 1 mm