AZ, Colorado Plateau, 20080608
Marble Canyon Rim, lichens

 Loc 1 
 Loc 2 

Loc 1 

Hwy 89, on plateau above Echo Cliffs between Bitter Spgs and Page.  Pinyon-juniper forest and sandstone. About 6000'. 36.7117N 111.5944W.

Caloplaca_trachyphylla c
Collema_crispum i
Lecanora_argopholis i
Phaeophyscia_hispidula c
Phaeophyscia_nigritella i
Physcia_dimidiata c
Toninia_sedifolia i
Toninia_tristis i
Xanthoparmelia_amableana i
Xanthoparmelia_mexicana i
Xanthoria_fallax i

Physcia dimidiata [] 

Phaeophyscia hirsuta [] 

Phaeophyscia nigricans [] 

Caloplaca cerina [] 

Xanthoria fallax [] 

Caloplaca microphyllina 

/arizonica

Rinodina? [] 

Lecanora juniperina? [] 

Lecidella 

/Lecidea?

Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. 

Lecanora argopholis [] [voucher] 

Thallus, at 30x. 

Caloplaca trachyphylla [] [voucher] 

Xanthoparmelia mexicana [] [voucher] 

Xanthoparmelia amableana [] [voucher] 

Paraphyses, in water, at 1000x. Spores in ascus, in water, at 1000x. Spore, in water, at 1000x. Septate spore, in K, at 1000x. Spore, in K, at 1000x. Apo section, in K, at 100x. Apo section, in water, at 400x. Apo section, in water, at 400x. Apo section, in water, at 100x, polarized. Apo section, in water, at 100x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. Thallus, close-up. 

Toninia tristis asiae-centralis [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on soil/moss, in shelter of sandstone boulder
 THAL v bullate, rich brown to olive-brown to greenish, covered with tiny raised black dots, several perforations, K-, C-, KC-
 MED white, K-, C-, KC-
 ALG green
 APO black, immersed, plane, soon immarginate, lecideine
epi dk brown, K+ weak violet-red
hymen yellow/orange brown, K+ weak violet-red
hypo (yellow/orange brown and K+ weak violet red fading into greenish below)
exciple dk brown, K-, strongly' conglutinated
para 3-4um wide, often branched, expanded at tips sometimes a few cells making it submoniliform, dark brown caps, stuck esp at tips
asci IKI+ blue tip with pale well-defined canal
 SPORE 4 per ascus (supposed to be 8 and maybe there are but there are very few spores and the asci are impossible to separate out before they burst), comet-shaped (rounded on one end and tapered on the other end), clear, simple to occ 1-septate, (15)18+/-2(23)x(3.6)4.6+/-0.6(6.1)um (Q=(2.9)4.0+/-0.5(5.0)) (N=21)

Ascus and spores, in K, at 1000x. Exciple, in K, at 400x. Apo section, in K, at 400x.  Epihymenium has turned violet. Apo section, in K, at 100x.  Epihymenium has turned violet. Apo section, in water, at 400x. Apo section, in water, at 100x, polarized. Apo section, in water, at 100x. Thallus and apothecium, at 30x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. 

Toninia sedifolia [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on soil/moss, in shelter of sandstone boulder
 THAL squamulose, squamules strongly convex, not to v d white farinose-pruinose, olive green but blackened in some areas, cracked in many places, cortex quite thick
 MED white
 ALG green, in continuous layer under cortex
 APO lecideine, black, plane, margin raised when young at least
epi dark gray, K+ violet, POL-
hymen clear, K-
hypo brown, exciple full of inflated gelatinous cells encased in brown pigment with weakly K+ violet gray pigment on surface
para branched, v inflated tips, clear, smooth, rather thick
 SPORE 8 per ascus, acicular to comet-shaped, 15-25x3-4um, clear, many little bubbles making it impossible to determine number of septae

Asci and spores, in K, at 1000x. Apo section, in water, at 400x. Apothecia, at 30x. Apothecia, at 10x. 

Polysporina cyclocarpa [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on sandstone, exposed
 THAL endolithic and completely invisible
 APO 1-1.5mm wide, black, gyrose, rough, v tough, epihymenium carbonized and rough, hymen red-brown to lt golden brown, hypo opaque, para invisible and strongly stuck together even in K, all K-
 SPORE many many per ascus, clear, simple, smooth, (5)6+/-1(7)x(2.2)2.5+/-0.2(2.9)um (Q=(1.8)2.3+/-0.4(2.8)) (N=6)

Collage of spores of various ages, in water, at 1000x. Apo section, in water, at 100x, polarized. Apo section, in water, at 400x. Mature spores, in K, at 1000x. Mature spores, in K, at 1000x. Paraphyses, in K, at 1000x. Mature spores, in K, at 1000x. Semi-mature spores, in K, at 1000x. Apo section, in water, at 100x, polarized. Apo section, in water, at 100x. Apothecia, at 30x. Apothecia, at 10x. 

Rinodina [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on sandstone
 THAL endolithic
 APO black, small, separate, adnate to stipiate, lecanorine
rims v thin almost disappearing, ragged whitish-gray, K-
disc black, epruinose, becoming convex
epi brown, small amount of tiny POL+ white granules
hymen clear, hypo clear to faint golden, exciple negligible? 
para many branched at tips, last several cells inflated wi brown pigmented caps, not strongly stuck together
 SPORE 8 per ascus, ellip, clear becoming gray becoming dark brown, smooth, 2 cells, rounded lumina with thick apex and less thick walls when young, losing thickened walls in age, dark band of pigment around waist, waist sl constricted even in K, (18)24+/-3(32)x(8.3)10+/-1(13)um (Q=(2.0)2.3+/-0.2(2.9)) (N=18)
Fails to key. I looked through all the species in Nash for ones with spores that obtain lengths over 30um, and only found 2 or 3, none of which came close to matching this one.  The essentially clear hypothecium and (weakly) thalline rim point strongly to Rinodina instead of <Buellia s.l.>, but that's as far as I can go.

Spores, in water, at 1000x. Algae, in water, at 1000x. Apothecia, at 30x. Apothecia, at 10x. 

Polysporina simplex [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on sandstone, exposed
 THAL endolithic and completely invisible
 APO (0.22)0.36+/-0.09(0.73)mm wide (N=30), black, gyrose, rough, v tough, epihymenium carbonized and rough, hymen red-brown to lt golden brown, hypo opaque, para invisible and strongly stuck together even in K, all K- or some golden pigment dissolving and spreading in K
 SPORE many many per ascus, clear, simple, smooth, oblong, (3.4)4.0+/-0.5(5.1)x(1.4)1.7+/-0.2(2.2)um (Q=(1.7)2.2+/-0.3(3.0)) (N=28)
Smaller apothecia and spores than P. cyclocarpa.

Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. 

Collema crispum [] [voucher] 

 GEN minutely foliose gel lichen, on sandstone
 THAL black to olive/brown, matte
lobe margins shortly-ascending and sinuous, not thickened at margin
isidia initally globose, becoming sub-squamulose
 APO none

Spore, in water, at 1000x. Periphyses, in K/I, at 1000x. Spores, in K/I, at 1000x.  (May be immature.)Perithecial section, in K/I, at 400x. Perithecial section, in K/I, at 100x. Perithecial section, in K, at 100x. Perithecial section, in water, at 400x. Perithecial section, in water, at 100x, polarized. Perithecial section, in water, at 100x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. 

Verrucaria macrostoma [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on sandstone, exposed
 THAL areolate to subsquamulose, areoles mostly 0.5-1.0mm, irreg angular, surface smooth and dark brown, basally pinched and developing lateral and occ a little bit of lower cortex
cortex composed of tightly-packed round cells with brown pigment caps, covered with thin hyaline layer of dead cells(POL+ white)
K-
 MED white
 ALG green, continuous tight layer just under cortex sev cells thick, K-but with something K+ red-violet near base of exciple
 APO perithecia, almost completely immersed, visible as barely-raised black pimples, subglobose, exciple pale brown and uniform or sl thinner near top, involucrellum black and clasping exciple on top 30-50%, paraphysoids mostly dissolving, hymenial gel K/I+ blue, asci K/I-+ fairly broadly clavate
 SPORE 8 per ascus, biseriate, ellip, smooth outside but with texture and usually one large bubble inside, (13)17+/-1.5(19)x(8.4)11+/-2.5(15)um (Q=(1.1)1.5+/-0.3(2.1)) (N=11), K/I+ golden to red-brown
Positive of the genus, since there are no other crustose perithecioid genera with K/I+ hymenium and black involucrella, and 8-spored asci.  But spores are too small, and no one mentions the K reaction of the lower medulla.

Spores in asci, in K/I, at 1000x. Spores and paraphyses, in water, at 1000x. Spore, in water, at 1000x. At 30x. At 10x. 

Xylographa parallela-s-l [] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, in juniper wood fragment
 THAL thin, light gray, K-, C-, KC-
 MED yellowish, K-, C-, KC-
 ALG green
 APO somewhat elongate, black, immersed, apothecial, epi dark gray, hymen clear and K/I+ weakly blue, para clear and moniliform
asci K/I- or v weakly blue, clavate, tip not thickened and K/I-
all POL-
 SPORE 8 per ascus, clear, simple, ellip, faintly K/I+ golden, (14)18+/-2(23)x(6.9)9.1+/-1.2(11)um (Q=(1.8)2.0+/-0.1(2.2)) (N=9)

Buellia disciformis 

/chloroleuca

 GEN crust lichen, on juniper wood fragment
 THAL rough and lumpy akmost granular, medium olive-gray, cortex well-defined, mostly K-, C-, CK-, KC-, a few granules weakly K+y
 APO black, lecideine, strong convex, scattered, epi dk brown, hymen clear, hypo dk brown, para tips abruptly swollen with dk brown pigment caps, exciple with pigment caps like paraphyses
 SPORE 8 per ascus, ellip, septate, clear to gray to brown, ~15-20x8um, 2 cells forming immediately, walls esp tip thickened around round lumina but becoming uniformly thin eventually, septum always thin
I grow weary of this obnoxious thing.

Lecanora hagenii [][MISSING PHOTO] [voucher] 

 GEN crust lichen, on juniper wood fragment
 THAL indistinct
 ALG green
 APO lecanorine, waxy, epruinose, convex and often sinuate, white smooth disappearing margin, disk red-brown, epi lt brown, hymen clear, hypo clear, all POL-, all C-
 SPORE 8 per ascus, simple, ellip, clear, ~10x5um


Loc 2 

Rim above Marble Canyon on Navajo land.  Arid desert scrub on limestone plateau, cliffs and washes.  Around 5000'. 36.6327N 111.7488W.

Dermatocarpon_americanum c
Lichinella_nigritella c
Placidium_squamulosum c
Caloplaca_trachyphyllum c
Lecanora_argopholis c

Thallus section, at 100x, in water. Thallus, at 10x. Thallus, at 10x. Thallus, at 10x. 

Dermatocarpon americanum [] [voucher] 

 GEN umbilicate lichen, on limestone, in sheltered places
 THAL lt gray, pruinose, covered with black dots flush with the surface, strongly contorted, appearing to have many lobes
below tan to almost black, smooth
many holdfasts
 MED white, tough, IKI/C+ red

Algae, in water, at 1000x. Thallus section, in water, at 400x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. 

Lichinella nigritella [] [voucher] 

 GEN small fruticose jelly lichen, on limestone, along cracks and fissures
 THAL black, erect crisped lobes, covered with minute granules, stratified, algae concentrated near surface, thin loosely interwoven hyphae in center
 ALG cyanobacterium, multi-celled globose clusters
 APO none

Algae, in water, at 1000x. Thallus section, in water, at 400x. Thallus, at 30x. Thallus, at 10x. 

minute caespitose black jelly [voucher] 

 GEN minute subfruticose jelly lichen, on limestone, in nooks and crannies
 THAL black, somewhat flattened lobes in small mostly separate pillowed masses, covered with isidioid granules
 ALG 10-15um wide, thick clear outer sheath, in large masses, perhaps Synechocystis
 APO not seen

Ascus and spores, in water, at 1000x. Perithecium section, in water, at 100x. Thallus, at 30x.  Shows wrinkling. Thallus, at 30x.  Shows perithecia. Thallus, at 30x.  Shows white margins. Thallus, at 10x. 

Placidium squamulosum [] [voucher] 

 GEN sqamulose lichen, on basic soil, exposed
 THAL rich medium to dark brown, often with white pruina around margins and occ laminal, smooth to sharply and tightly wrinkled, black weft broadly attaching squamules below, squam 4-6mm wide, tightly appressed, marg raised in places, cortex thick brown tightly packed isodiametric cells, no lower cortex?, K-, C-, KC-
 MED white, blocky, K-, C-, KC-
 ALG green, in small clumps
 APO perthecia, immersed, visible as black sunken dots, paraphyses disintigrating, asci clavate, walls clear under LM
 SPORE 8 per ascus, simple, clear, oblong, ~17x8um, textured inside

Calopaca trachphylla [] 

Paraphyses, in K, at 1000x. Algae (trebouxioid), in K, at 1000x. Apo section, in water, at 100x, polarized. Apo section, in water, at 100x. Thallus, at 30x.  Covered with parasite. Thallus, at 10x.  Covered with parasite. 

Lecanora argopholis [] 

 GEN crustose lichen, on limestone, exposed
 THAL areolate with almost radiating lobes at margni, strongly convex areoles, grey to yellow-gray to mostly pale yellow-green, K+y, KC-, C-
 MED white, K-, KC-, C-
 APO lecanorine
disc black with red sheen in young ones, nearly plane
rim thick, smooth, even, thalline
epi pale brown, filled with POL+ white granules(insol in K)
hymen clear
hypo clear, no crystals
thick continuous algae layer, medulla and cortex under and outside algal layer strongly POL+ white from small granules/crystals (insol in K)
para v abundant rel to asci, most with one or two branches, clear, barely expanded at tips, strongly conglutinated but easily separating in K
asci IKI+ blue walls
 SPORE 8 per ascus, clear, simple, ellip, 10-14x5-7um
Epihymenial granules are supposed to be soluble in K.  This specimen is also covered with spider-webby black strands of some parasite.

< 20080607 | home | index | 20080609 >

Copyright ©2008 Jason Hollinger
Creative Commons license
Last changed on November 13, 2008