Tayloriellina malmeana Wilk, 2023

Wilk, Karina, 2023, New species of Tayloriellina (lichenized Ascomycota, Teloschistaceae) from Bolivia, Phytotaxa 616 (2), pp. 183-188 : 184-186

Tayloriellina malmeana Wilk , sp. nov. MycoBank number: 849807

Thallus areolate-subsquamulose to granulose, orange yellow to creamy/grey side by side, with indistinct globose isidia in places.Apothecia abundant, zeorine, apothecial discs intensively orange.Ascospores polarilocular, ellipsoid to narrowly ellipsoid, medium size, 11‒17 × 4.5‒8.0 µm, septum 3.0‒5.0 µm.

Type:— BOLIVIA. Dept. Cochabamba, Prov. Quillacollo: East Cordillera, area of Inkarraya-Sipesipe , dry Inter-Andean Valleys , 3146 m elev., 17°29’25”S, 66°22’09”W, rocky and shrubby slope, sunny place, E exposed, 17 December 2004, K. Wilk 3206 (KRAM-L-71766‒ holotype, LPB, B‒isotypes) .

( Fig. 1 )

Thallus tiny, areolate to subsquamulose or granulose, 70‒120 µm thick, usually discontinuous, irregular in outline, orange yellow, creamy to light gray, often occurs with orange and grayish thalli side by side, epruinose, subsquamules crenate, areoles 0.1‒0.4 mm in diam.; vegetative propagules scarce, as small globose isidia, concolorous with thallus, scattered; prothallus absent. Thalline cortex clearly paraplectenchymatous, even, 5‒45 µm thick, anthraquinone pigments present, K+ red, or absent; necral layer present, ca. 8.5 µm thick, covered by thin layer of granules insoluble in K and N, pol+ creamy; algal layer continuous, algae chlorococcoid, 5‒14 µm in diam.

Apothecia abundant, crowded, initially immersed, then erumpent to adnate, round or angular by compression, distinctly zeorine, up to 0.7 mm in diam.; disc first concave, then plane, intensive orange, epruinose, even; apothecial margin medium thick, more or less elevated above discs; proper margin conspicuous, slightly paler than disc, epruinose; thalline margin usually partly reduced, orange or creamy/gray, even. Parathecium thin, 50‒70 µm thick, prosoplectenchymateous, anthraquinone pigments present. Amphithecium thick, 60‒130 µm thick, partly reduced, apothecial cortex indistinct, thin, 5‒15 µm thick, anthraquinone pigments present or absent; algae abundant, forming continuous layer (but algae fewer below hypothecium); epihymenium brownish yellow, granular (anthraquinones), K+ red; hymenium 75‒85 µm thick; hypothecium 85‒110 µm thick, prosoplectenchymatous, pale yellowish, oil droplets absent; paraphyses simple to branched, 1 µm broad at base, with upper cell 3‒4 µm wide. Asci 8-spored; ascospores hyaline, ellipsoid to narrowly ellipsoid, thin-walled, (11‒)13.5±1.2(‒17) × (4.5‒)5.8±0.6(‒8.0) µm, septum (3.0‒)3.7±0.7(‒5.0) µm (n= 79).

Pycnidia not abundant, ostiole orange, partly immersed, conidia bacilliform, 2‒3 × 1 µm (n= 15).

Spot tests: Apothecial discs K+ red, thallus K+ red or K–.

Etymology: The epithet is derived from the name of the Swedish lichenologist Gustav Oskar Andersson Malme (1864–1937) in appreciation of his major contribution to the knowledge of South American Teloschistaceae .

Habitat and distribution: The species was found growing on tree bark (branches) in semiarid, shrubby and rocky slops in Inter-Andean Valleys in Bolivia, at the elevation of ca. 3000 m. It is known only from Bolivia.

The collecting site was shared with other species of the Teloschistaceae recently reported, e.g. Cinnabaria boliviana Wilk & Lücking in Wilk et al. (2021: 113), Scutaria andina ( Räsänen 1939: 140) Søchting, Frödén & Arup in Arup et al. (2013: 63), and Wetmoreana spp. ( Wilk et al. 2021).

Note: Tayloriellina malmeana is characterized by delicate, orange-yellow, creamy to gray, areolate-subsquamulose to granulose thalli, and numerous, zeorine apothecia with intensive orange discs. Vegetative propagules are scarce, in the form of globose isidia, concolorous with the thallus. The thallus cortex is thin but clearly paraplectenchymatous, covered by a necral layer, with or without anthraquinones, but always with other colorless granules insoluble in K and N, pol+ creamy ( Figs 1D–E ).

The molecular analysis indicates that T. malmeana is closely related to T. microphyllina ( Fig. 2 ). The two species are, however, clearly separated by their thallus morphology—in T. microphyllina the thallus is generally much better developed and mostly dark orange, not dominated by apothecia, but producing distinct and usually abundant orange soralia. Moreover, T. microphyllina has distinctly smaller ascospores (10‒14 µm vs. 11‒17 µm in T. malmeana ), and larger apothecia (up to 1.0 mm vs. up to 0.7 mm in T. malmeana ) ( Wetmore 2004).Another similar species, “ Caloplaca ” trabicola differs from T. malmeana in having a whitish areolate thallus, numerous and distinct pycnidia, and larger spores with distinctly thicker spore septa [(12‒)14.9±1.1(‒16) × (5.0‒)6.5±0.6(‒7.0) µm, septum (5.0‒)5.9±1.0(‒9.0) µm (n= 17)] ( Fig. 3 ). Tayloriellina malmeana is also similar to “ Caloplaca ” durietzii H. Magn. (1953: 188). According to Magnusson (1953) the latter taxon, in comparison to T. malmeana , has a thallus that is mostly indistinct, it has ±lecanorine apothecia with crenulate margins, and it does not produce vegetative propagules. “ Caloplaca ” durietzii was examined by Gaya et al. (2015) and Kondratyuk et al. (2014, 2015b), and the results suggest that “C.” durietzii is nested in the subfamily Xanthorioideae , in the genus Scythioria S.Y. Kondr. et al. in Kondratyuk et al. (2014: 156). Finally, T. malmeana has some similarities with an undescribed species, “ Caloplaca ” sp. 5, studied by Wetmore (2007). Both produce globose isidia but the latter forms an orange, areolate thallus with abrupt margins, and apart from the isidia, the thallus margin may also bear small lobules.

During taxonomic studies on “ Caloplaca ” byrsonimae s. lat. from Swedish Museum of Natural History (S), two specimens collected by Malme in Paraguay (S-L50600, S-L50601; Malme 1926) were found to be superficially very similar to the Bolivian material of T. malmeana . These were recognized as a putative undescribed species (under elaboration), different from “C.” byrsonimae ( Malme 1926: 14) Zahlbr. (1930 [1931]: 80) s.str. The latter resembles “ Caloplaca ” granularis (Müll. Arg. 1888: 63) Zahlbr. (1930 [1931]: 141) in that it produces distinct yellow-orange soralia and it lacks a distinct thallus (see also Wetmore 2004). The Malme specimens from Paraguay differs from T. malmeana by having a better developed, permanently gray thallus (K–), common blastidia and longer ascospores with distinctly thicker spore septa. Due to its high similarity to T. malmeana , the Paraguay material of “C.” byrsonimae s. lat. may be considered to belong to Tayloriellina . However, further studies must be carried out especially to compare specimens from Paraguay with additional “ Caloplaca ” trabicola collections, which produces similar ascospores and also shares a similar morphology.

Paratypes examined: BOLIVIA. Dept. Cochabamba, Prov. Quillacollo: East Cordillera, area of Inkarraya-Sipesipe, dry Inter-Andean Valleys , 3146 m elev., 17°29’25”S, 66°22’09”W, rocky and shrubby slope, sunny place, E exposure, 17 December 2004, K. Wilk 3177, 3181, 3198, 3199, 3206, 3207, 3250, 3255, 3211, 3263 ( KRAM, LPB and B); 2846 m elev., 17º28’39”S 66º21’43”W, 17 December 2004, A. Flakus 4933 ( KRAM, LPB) .

Comparative material seen: “ Caloplaca ” brysonimae: BRAZIL. Matto Grosso, Serra da Chapada, pr. S„o Jeronymo , 3 June 1894, G. A:n, Malme s. n. (S-L2644, holotype) . PARAGUAY. ad arborem solitariam, in coni apricot, 2 September 1892, G. A:n, Malme 1491 ×× and 1491 (S-L50600, S-L50601, syntypes). “ Caloplaca ” trabicola : URUGUAY. Florida, 22 January 1949, H. S. Osorio 1752 ( F). Tayloriellina erythrosticta : AUSTRALIA. Western Australia, “ Dryandra Forest ”, a few km NW of Narrogin, 17 August 1994, K. & A. Kalb s. n. (Obermayer, Lichenoth. Graec. 26, B). Tayloriellina microphyllina: Wetmore, Telosch. Exsicc. 58–63 ( KRAM). Wetmore, Lich. Exsicc. 180 ( KRAM) .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Tayloriellina malmeana (holotype, K. Wilk 3206, KRAM). A. B. Habit of thallus, creamy (B) and grayish forms (B). C. Cross-section of apothecium. D. E. Cross-sections of thallus in regular (D) and polarized light (E, arrow indicates granule layer, pol+ creamy, insoluble in K and N). F. Ascospores. G. Pycnospores (paratype, K. Wilk 3198, KRAM). Scales: A, B = 1 mm; C = 100 µm; D, E = 50 µm; F = 20 µm; G = 10 µm.

FIGURE 2. Phylogenetic placement of Tayloriellina malmeana within the subfamily Teloschistoideae derived from maximum likelihood (ML) analyses of rDNA ITS locus. ML bootstrap value are presented at the nodes. Wetmoreana decipioides was used to root the tree.

FIGURE 3. “Caloplaca” trabicola (H. S. Osorio 1752, F) A. Habit of thallus. B. Ascus with spores. Scales: A = 1 mm; B = 20 µm.