KEYS TO THE LICHENS OF ITALY - 65) PORINA s.lat. and STRIGULACEAE
Pier Luigi Nimis
Apparatus of images: Andrea Moro - Software and databases: Stefano Martellos

This key includes all species of Porina s.lat. and of Strigulaceae known to occur in Italy (Nimis 2016), plus several other species which are known from neighbouring countries (see e.g. Nimis & al. 2018), and whose presence in Italy is possible, for a total of 39 species. The taxonomy of Porina, a large (c. 140 species) genus of the Porinaceae (see Grube & al. 2004) is far from being settled. Hafellner & Kalb (1995) resurrected the genus Pseudosagedia for species of the Porina nitidula-group with the perithecial pigment termed Pseudosagedia-violet and lacking setae, while Clauzade & Roux (1985) segregated the isidiate species into the new genus Zamenhofia. These and other attempts of a new generic classification were criticized by some authors (e.g. Lücking 1998, Orange 2013, Orange & al. 2021) who observed that the characters for the segregation of other genera from Porina are found in smooth transition throughout the family and therefore difficult to apply. Porina would then be an interesting case where previously distinguished genera have been progressively synonymised to leave only very few genera in the family, yet of unclear relationships (see e.g. Baloch & Grube 2006). However, according to Lücking (in litt.) the genus is likely to be split into several smaller genera in the future. Pending further study, I still treat the genus in a broad sense, including Pseudosagedia and Zamenhofia.
Strigula Fr. was a genus of c. 70,(mostly) foliicolous lichens, with the highest diversity in the wet tropics, reasonably diverse in the subtropics and warm-temperate regions, much less so at higher latitudes. Its taxonomic position was not clear (Nelsen & al. 2009), but presently the genus is included into the Strigulaceae in its own order Strigulales (see Jaklitsch & al. 2016). Molecular phylogenetic analysis focusing on a broad set of foliicolous species hitherto assigned to Strigula demonstrated that the latter is heterogeneous and can be divided into six genera, all characterized by a combination of morphological and anatomical features (Jiang & al. 2020). Given that S. jamesii, the only non-foliicolous representative of Strigula s.l. sequenced so far, is unrelated to the six foliicolous clades and positioned far from Strigula s. str., Hongsanan & al. 2020) also reassessed the generic classification of non-foliicolous representatives so far placed in this genus, with the proposal of three new genera based on characters of the ascospores and macro- and microconidia. Strigula s.str. includes now only foliicolous species centered around S. smaragdula, after separation of the genera Dichoporis, Phyllocharis, Phylloporis, Puiggariella, Raciborskiella, Racoplaca, Serusiauxiella, and Swinscowia.
European species of Strigula as traditionally delimited were treated by Roux & Sérusiaux (2004). A key to British species is in Orange (2013).

References

Baloch E., Grube M. 2006. Evolution and phylogenetic relationships within Porinaceae (Ostropomycetidae), focusing on foliicolous species. Mycol. Res., 110, 2: 125-136.
Clauzade G., Roux C. 1985. Likenoj de Okcidenta Europo. Ilustrita determinlibro. Bull. Soc. Bot. Centre-Ouest, N. Ser., N. Spec. 7. Royan, 893 pp.
Hafellner J., Kalb K. 1995. Studies in Trichotheliales ordo novus. Bibl. Lichenol., 57: 161-186.
Hongsanan S. & al. 2020. Refined families of Dothideomycetes: orders and families incertae sedis in Dothideomycetes. Fungal Diversity, 105: 17-318, 2020.
Jaklitsch W., Baral H.-O., Lücking R., Lumbsch H.T., Frey W. (eds.) 2016. Engler's Syllabus of Plant Families. Part 1/2: Ascomycota. G. Borntraeger, Stuttgart, 322 pp.
Jiang S.H., Lücking R., Xavier-Leite A.B., Cáceres M.E.S., Aptroot A., Portilla C.V., Wei J.C. 2020. Reallocation of foliicolous species of the genus Strigula into six genera (lichenized Ascomycota, Dothideomycetes, Strigulaceae). Fungal Divers., 102:257–291.
Lücking R. 1998. Additions and corrections to the knowledge of the foliicolous lichen flora of Costa Rica. The genus Trichothelium (lichenized ascomycetes: Trichotheliaceae). Nova Hedwigia, 66: 375-417.
Nelsen M.P., Lücking R., Aptroot A., Andrew C.J., Cáceres M.E.S. & al. 2014. Elucidating phylogenetic relationships and genus-level classification within the fungal family Trypetheliaceae. (Dothideomycetes: Ascomycota). Taxon, 63: 974-992.
Nimis P.L. 2016. The lichens of Italy. A second annotated catalogue. EUT, Trieste, 740 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.
Orange A. 2013. British and Other Pyrenocarpous Lichens. Vers. II. August 2013.
Orange A., Cannon P., Malíček J., Sanderson N., Coppins B., Simkin J. 2021. Ostropales: Porinaceae, including the genus Porina. Revisions of British and Irish Lichens, 4: 1-12.
Roux C., Sérusiaux E. 2004. Le genre Strigula (Lichens) en Europe et en Macaronésie. Bibl. Lichenol., 90, 96 pp.

Last modified: September, 13, 2021


Project Dryades, Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste - CC BY-SA 4.0