Revision of the corticolous Mazosia species, with a key to Mazosia species with 3-septate ascospores

Abstract

A revision of corticolous Mazosia specimens showed that four species are present, all differing from the foliicolous taxa in the genus. One of them is widely distributed in the tropics and the others are, as far as is known, neotropical. Three species are co-occurring in NE Brazil. They can be distinguished as follows: M. leptosticta (Nyl.) Sparrius has longer ascospores (22-35 Â 4-7 mm) than the other species, M. endonigra A. A. Menezes, M. Cáceres & Aptroot sp. nov. has sessile apothecia on a smooth thallus and occasionally also sessile pycnidia, M. carnea (Eckfeldt) Aptroot & M. Cáceres comb. nov. has immersed apothecia and a smooth thallus, and M. viridescens (Fée) Aptroot & M. Cáceres comb. nov. has distinct verrucae on the thallus. Descriptions are given and an identification key is presented to all Mazosia species with 3-septate ascospores, which includes all corticolous species known so far.

Diversity of foliicolous lichens in isolated montane rainforests (Brejos) of northeastern Brazil and their biogeography in a neotropical context

“…Thus far, diversity studies were performed in these ecosystems only on plants, mammals, insects and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Assis et al, ; Locatelli, Machado, & Medeiros, ; Pôrto, Germano, & Borges, ; Rodal & Nascimento, ; Rodal & Sales, ; Souza, Languth, & Amaral, ). Studies on lichenized fungi in general in Brejos have been scarce, focusing on their composition and habitat preferences (Cáceres, Lücking, & Rambold, ), with some additional recent inventories and discoveries of new taxa (Aptroot et al, ; Cáceres, Mota, de Jesus, & Aptroot, ; Sobreira, Aptroot, & Cárceres, ; Xavier‐Leite, Menezes, Aptroot, & Cáceres, ).…”

A new species of Mazosia (lichenised Ascomycetes: Roccellaceae) from Tasmania

“…It compared favourably with herbarium material of the generitype, M. rotula, M. phyllosema, the other taxon of the genus known to occur in the region, and several other species of Mazosia available for study, and with published accounts, notably those of Lücking (2008), Aptroot et al (2014) and Sakata et al (2017). Critical characters of the new species are the Trentepohlia photobiont, characteristic for corticolous taxa, as distinct from foliicolous taxa that contain Phycopeltis (Aptroot et al 2014), the stratified construction of the apothecial margin, notably the layer of pigmented excipular hyphae overlain by a layer of crystals that is in turn overlain by a thalline layer (Lücking 2008), the particular ascus type (Fig. 2), the branched and anastomosing paraphyses, and the distinctive ascospores with an enlarged, uppermost median cell (Aptroot et al 2014;Lücking 2008, Fig.…”

“…Critical characters of the new species are the Trentepohlia photobiont, characteristic for corticolous taxa, as distinct from foliicolous taxa that contain Phycopeltis (Aptroot et al 2014), the stratified construction of the apothecial margin, notably the layer of pigmented excipular hyphae overlain by a layer of crystals that is in turn overlain by a thalline layer (Lücking 2008), the particular ascus type (Fig. 2), the branched and anastomosing paraphyses, and the distinctive ascospores with an enlarged, uppermost median cell (Aptroot et al 2014;Lücking 2008, Fig. 2).…”

“…Within the genus in general, M. corticola is closest to M. phyllosema with respect to ascospore size and gross morphology, but that species is foliicolous, contains Phycopeltis, and lacks secondary compounds. The corticolous species of Mazosia were comprehensively revised by Aptroot et al (2014) and an expanded key to all species was published by Sakata et al (2017), enabling ready comparisons with M. corticola. None of the taxa treated contain psoromic acid.…”

“…Of the more than 25 described species, the majority are foliicolous. Only six corticolous species are known, four confined to the Neotropics (Aptroot et al 2014) and two to Japan (Sakata et al 2017). Thus, the discovery of a corticolous species in the Nothofagus-dominated cool temperate rainforests of Tasmania can be considered truly remarkable.…”