Neoprotoparmelia isidiata (Diederich, Aptroot & Serus .) Garima Singh, Lumbsch & I. Schmitt

Singh, Garima, ptroot, Andre, ico, Victor J., tte, Juergen, Pradeep K. Divakar,, Crespo, Ana, Caceres, Marcela Eugenia da Silva, H. Thorsten Lumbsch, & Schmitt, Imke, 2018, Neoprotoparmelia gen. nov. and Maronina (Lecanorales, Protoparmelioideae): species description and generic delimitation using DNA barcodes and phenotypical characters, MycoKeys 44, pp. 19-50 : 19

Neoprotoparmelia isidiata (Diederich, Aptroot & Serus.) Garima Singh, Lumbsch & I. Schmitt comb. nov. Figure 10

Basionym.

Protoparmelia isidiata Diederich, Aptroot & Sérus. in Aptroot et al., Biblioth. Lichenol. 64: 146. 1997.

Synonym.

Maronina isidiata (Diederich, Aptroot & Sérus.) Divakar, A. Crespo & Lumbsch in Divakar et al., Fungal Diversity 84: 114 (2017).

Type.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA. Simbu, Mount Wilhelm, near lake Piunde, 5°47'S, 145°03'E, ca. 3600 m alt.; 5-8 August 1992, A. Aptroot 31494 (holotype: BR).

Description.

Thallus consisting of isolated convex areoles of up to ca. 0.1 mm thick and 0.2 mm wide, somewhat shiny, pale brown to dark brown or mottled whitish-grey, on a fully immersed hyaline hypothallus, marginal prothallus black, thin or absent. Isidia usually solitary on almost each thallus areole, up to 0.5 mm long, persistently 0.07-0.1 mm wide over their whole length, cylindrical, usually rather irregularly once or more rarely repeatedly branched and somewhat nodulose, glossy, pale to dark brown, tips dark brown to almost black. Apothecia sessile, initially round, older ones usually with wavy outline, 0.6-3.5 mm diam., disc flat, smooth, glossy, dark brown to orange brown. Margin glossy, ca. 0.25 mm wide, glossy brown at the outside, not or only slightly higher than the disc. Hymenium hyaline, not inspersed with oil droplets, up to 70 μm high; epihymenium fuscous brown, pigment in K becoming soluble and paler; hypothecium hyaline, up to 120 μm thick including subhymenium; excipulum hyaline throughout, with a 20-30 μm thick layer of cortex, without crystals, with algae, extending below the hypothecium (cupulate). Paraphyses branched, ca. 2.5 μm wide, not thickened at the tips. Asci cylindrico-clavate, up to 35 × 9 μm, with 8 mostly biseriate ascospores. Ascospores hyaline, simple, narrowly ellipsoid, not constricted, (9 –)11–13(– 17) × 2-3 μm, without appendages. Pycnidia not observed.

Chemistry.

Spot tests: medulla of thallus and isidia UV++ greenish-white, C–, P–, K–, KC+ pink. TLC: alectoronic acid (major), dehydroalectoronic acid (minor or trace) and β-alectoronic acid (trace).

Distribution and ecology.

On bark of trees in forests. Known from Papua New Guinea only.

Remarks.

This species differs from the other species by having a thallus consisting of tiny areoles, generally bearing just one isidium each and by large apothecia.

Additional specimens examined.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA. Simbu, Mount Wilhelm, near lake Piunde, ca. 3600 m alt.; 5-8 August 1992, A. Aptroot 32711 (BR); P. Diederich 10359 (Hb. Diederich); March 1987, A. Aptroot 18353 (BR).