Fissurina adscribens (Nyl.) Z.F. Jia & Luecking

Jia, Ze-Feng & Luecking, Robert, 2017, Resolving the species of the lichen genus Graphina Muell. Arg. in China, with some new combinations, MycoKeys 25, pp. 13-29 : 22-23

1. Fissurina adscribens (Nyl.) Z.F. Jia & Luecking comb. nov.

Graphis adscribens Bas.: Nyl., in Bull. Soc. Linn. Normandie, ser. 2., 2: 117, 1868; Graphina adscribens (Nyl.) Müll. Arg. in Hedwigia 31: 284, 1892.

Graphina olivascens = Zahlbr., in Feddes Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 31: 215, 1930 (non Zahlbr. 1933); Type: China (Hunan), Handel-Mazzetti 11220 (holotype W!)

Description.

Thallus corticolous, crustose, surface grey to olive, waxy and smooth; apothecia lirelliform, elongate, Fissurina -morph, single and rarely branched, 2-4.5 mm long and 0.2-0.35 mm wide; discs closed, slit-shaped; proper margin unconspicuous, concolorous with thallus; proper exciple not carbonized; hymenium clear, at most 150 µm high, I–; 8 ascospores per ascus, hyaline, ellipsoid, muriform, 8/3-4 locular, I–, 22-30 × 8-9 µm.

Chemistry.

No substances present.

Notes.

Because of the characteristics of thallus and lirellae, this species belongs to Fissurina . It is similar to Fissurina subnitida (Nyl.) Nyl. but differs by having smaller ascospores ( F. subnitida : 27-35 × 13-16 µm; Staiger 2002). Therefore, we accept the name in Fissurina as F. adscribens (Nyl.) Z.F. Jia & Lücking. The type material of Graphina olivascens has Fissurina -like lirellae, hyaline, muriform ascospores (8/3-4 locular, I–, 20-25 × 8-9 µm; Zahlbruckner 1930) and lacks lichen substances, and its characteristics fall within the range of F. adscribens , and it is here placed as synonym of the latter. Fissurina adscribens is a corticolous species reported from Hunan (as Graphina olivascens , Zahlbruckner 1930, 1932). Unfortunately, the material reported from Hong Kong as Graphina adscribens ( Thrower 1988: 92) could not be studied but based on its reported chemistry (stictic and constictic acids) and larger ascospores (30-35 × 5-10 µm) represents another species of Fissurina .