The genus Solorina, as delimited in the traditional sense, exhibited significant morphological and chemical variations between species. Miadlikowska & Lutzoni (2004) had already demonstrated that the genus was polyphyletic. The phylogenetic analyses by Zheng & al. (1995), based on three molecular loci, brought to the recognition of two genera: Solorina s.str., including 2 species with a bright orange lower surface containing solorinic acid, and the new genus Pseudosolorina, which includes species with white or brownish lower surfaces, mostly without secondary metabolites; the two genera also differ in spore ornamentation. However, Zheng & al. (1995) erroneously state that the type species of Solorina is S. crocea, while it actually is S. saccata (designated by Clements & Shear, Gen. fung., Edn 2: 318. 1931). Furthermore, the genus includes the type of a name (Solorinina Nyl. 1884), that ought to have been adopted. This means that Pseudosolorina is illegitimate, that all species included in that genus should stay in Solorina, and that a new name should be found for the S. crocea-group (R. Lücking, in litt.). Until this nomenclatural problem is solved, I still maintain all species under the traditional, broad concept of Solorina. The European species were treated by Martinez & Burgaz (1998). This key includes all taxa known to occur in Italy (Nimis 2016) plus 2 taxa which are known from adjacent areas in the Alps (Nimis & al. 2018), and which are likely to occur also in Italy, for a total of 8 infrageneric taxa.

References

Martinez I., Burgaz A.R. 1998. Revision of the genus Solorina (Lichenes) in Europe, based on spore size variation. Ann. Bot. Fenn., 35: 137-142.
Miadlikowska J., Lutzoni F. 2004. Phylogenetic classification of Peltigeralean fungi (Peltigerales, Ascomycota). Am. J. Bot., 91, 3: 449-464.
Nimis P.L. 2016. The Lichens of Italy. A Second Annotated Catalogue. EUT, Trieste, 739 pp.
Nimis P.L., Hafellner J., Roux C., Clerc P., Mayrhofer H., Martellos S., Bilovitz P.O. 2018. The Lichens of the Alps. An Annotated Catalogue. Mycokeys, 31: 1-634.
Zheng T., Wang L, Ai M.,Gan Y., Fan R., Zhang Y., Worthy F.R., Jin J., Meng W., Zhang S., Wang X. 2025. Taxonomic revision of Solorina (Peltigeraceae, Ascomycota) reveals a new genus and three new species. J. Fungi 2025, 11, 169.

Last modified: August, 14, 2025

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