Alan M. Fryday

The genus Scoliciosporum includes crustose lichens characterized by gelatinized, branched and anastomosing paraphyses, Lecanora -type asci, and hyaline, usually septate ascospores. During investigations of crustose lichens in the Canadian Arctic, we discovered a distinctive, previously undescribed species of the genus occurring on terricolous bryophytes, an unusual substratum for the genus. Scoliciosporum quajautik is further characterized by its well-developed thallus, large apothecia with a persistent margin, fusiform 0–1-septate ascospores, and a pigmented hypothecium that produces a magenta effusion with potassium hydroxide solution. Phylogenetic analyses based on four loci (mtSSU, LSU, ITS and RPB 2) place the species within a well-supported Scoliciosporum clade, confirming its generic placement despite its atypical morphology and ecology. The new species is currently known from five collections from Nunavut and northern Québec, all from lichen-rich tundra near the boundary between the Northern and Southern Arctic ecozones. In addition, we discuss the status of Catillaria muscicola and Stereocaulon cumulatum in the North American Arctic and conclude that Catillaria muscicola is known only from the type collection from Greenland whereas Stereocaulon cumulatum is present and probably widespread.

The new genera Aurantiothallia and Hertelaria are proposed for species of saxicolous lichens known only from Tasmania. Aurantiothallia is erected for the species currently known as Poeltiaria tasmanica and the newly described A. riparia , both of which have an orange thallus lacking lichen products but with an amyloid medulla and black apothecia with only brown pigments internally. Hertelaria is based on the new species H. doleritica , which has an atrobrunnea-type thallus and large adnate, red-brown apothecia up to 2.4 mm diam. Phylogenetic analyses based on the markers ITS, mtSSU and RPB 1 clearly support the morphological results, each genus forming a strongly supported clade. Also newly described are: Poeltiaria caeruleorubra , with a red-pigmented inner exciple that contrasts strongly with the adjacent bright blue hymenium; Porpidia lutulata , which has small apothecia and a granular thallus with an amyloid (I+ violet) medulla; and Porpidia umbonifera var. sanguinea , which differs from the typical variety in having a reddish pigment in the inner exciple. All the new taxa are known only from silicious rocks, mostly dolerite, in Tasmania. We also report Porpidia albocaerulescens var. polycarpiza and P. hydrophila for the first time from Tasmania, confirm the presence of P. umbonifera var. umbonifera on the island, and provide a provisional key to porpidioid lichens in Tasmania.

Aims: Lichens and bryophytes are an often overlooked, yet dominant biotic component of rock outcrops and other lithic habitats. Saxicolous lichen and bryophyte communities are frequently species‐rich and play important ecological roles, including rock weathering, soil formation, and vascular plant recruitment. In this study, we test whether saxicolous communities differ between two substrate types along a coastal to inland spatial gradient. Location: Ultramafic and sandstone rock outcrops in central California in San Luis Obispo, Monterey, and Kern counties. Methods: We sampled saxicolous communities of eight ultramafic and eight sandstone outcrop sites along a 70 km maritime influence gradient using 20 × 20 cm quadrats stratified between north‐ and south‐facing rock aspects. For each quadrat, species composition, distance above the ground, and rock microtopography characteristics were recorded. For each site, rock elemental composition and climate parameters including rainfall, temperature, and fog were documented. Results: We recorded 132 lichen and seven bryophyte taxa across 128 quadrats. Saxicolous communities were significantly different between ultramafic rock and sandstone, as well as between coastal, intermediate, and inland sites. Ultramafic rocks hosted fewer species overall but had a higher abundance and diversity of cyanolichens. The effect of rock type on species composition was mediated by maritime influence, with coastal samples showing greater cross‐substrate differentiation than intermediate and inland samples. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate the interactive roles of substrate, climate, and microtopography in shaping saxicolous communities. The role of substrate in structuring saxicolous communities is mediated by climate and accentuated by the different microtopography profiles of the ultramafic and sandstone rocks. Improving our understanding of how saxicolous communities vary across the landscape is an important step in identifying conservation priorities for these highly diverse and ecologically significant communities.

We describe the new species Caeruleum terricola from Grootbos Private Nature Reserve in the Overstrand Municipality of Western Cape Province, South Africa. The new species occurs on consolidated soil and is characterized by its lack of an epigeic thallus, innate apothecia that are often blue-gray to green pruinose and polysporous asci. Nuclear and mitochondrial ribosomal DNA data place the new species within the genus Caeruleum in the Lichinomycetes . We discuss the taxonomic status of previously described species of Caeruleum and their relationship to our new species with particular emphasis on the status of the genus in North America and make the new combination Caeruleum aeruginosum . We also discuss other polysporous species of lichenized fungi reported from South Africa, an unexplained insertion in the ITS1 section of the genome of C. terricola, and how the addition of this and other species affects the systematic relationships within Lichinomycetes, specifically the circumscription of the Thelocarpaceae and its constituent genera . Graphical Abstract

We present a robust, five-locus phylogeny of the Megasporaceae and, based on this, propose several taxonomic innovations. The new genus Antidea is erected for Aspicilia brucei, which occupies a position near the base of the phylogeny, and the new species Aspicilia indeterminata and A. suavis are described from Montana. We also show that all North American (and some European) records of Aspilidea myrinii are misidentifications with many representing a second species in the genus, differing from A. myrinii by having elevated apothecia and narrower ascospores and for which we make the new combination Aspilidea subadunans. Finally, we make the new combinations Lobothallia determinata and L. peltastictoides, and report the lichenicolous fungus Sagediopsis aspiciliae (on A. subadunans) as new to North America.

The new species Caloplaca tswaluensis is described from Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, Northern Cape Province, South Africa. Caloplaca tswaluensis occurs on the trunks of Vachellia erioloba (camelthorn) trees and is characterized by its 3-septate to quadrilocular ascospores. Molecular data indicate that the new species is placed in the subfamily Teloschistoideae but cannot be assigned to any existing genus and, because its systematic position is unclear, we choose to describe it in Caloplaca s. lat. Caloplaca tswaluensis is compared with other crustose Teloschistaceae species with plurilocular ascospores.

The new genus Imsharria is proposed for a crustose species found on or near mountain summits on the Falkland Islands. It is separated from other genera of Lecideaceae by a combination of Porpidia-type asci, halonate ascospores, immersed apothecia and a hyaline hypothecium, and forms a distinct branch in the phylogenetic analysis using the markers nrITS and mtSSU. The single species, I. orangei, is characterized by its innate apothecia with a brown disc and a thallus containing norstictic acid and an amyloid (I+ violet) medulla. In addition, Porpidia imshaugii is described for a species from the Falkland Islands resembling P. skottsbergiana but with larger ascospores, and Porpidia navarina is shown to belong in the genus Poeltiaria, with the new combination Poeltiaria navarina being made. A key to the Lecideaceae on the Falkland Islands is provided.

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