Flora of New Zealand Series

Type : Neophyllis melacarpa (F.Wilson) F.Wilson [=Phyllis melacarpa F.Wilson]

Description : Thallus dimorphic. Primary thallus squamulose, linear or flabellate. Photobiont green, Trebouxia -like. Medulla white. True podetia very short, solid, lacking a central canal and an internal cartilaginous layer. Ascomata apothecia, sessile, terminal on the tips of podetia. Hymenium to 60 μm tall, I+ blue; epithecium 8–12 μm thick. Hypothecium dark-brown. Asci thick-walled, cylindrical 50 × 10 μm, with a strongly amyloid tube structure. Ascospores simple, colourless, ellipsoidal to oblong–ovoid, 8 per ascus, (5–)10–12 × 5–7 μm. Conidiomata pycnidia. Conidiophores producing small, bacillar conidia terminally and intercalary. Conidia corresponding to Vobis type VI (Vobis 1980).

Neophyllis, an Australasian genus of two species (Filson 1992c; Döring et al. 1999; Wei & Ahti 2002) formerly regarded as a synonym of Gymnoderma Nyl. (Yoshimura 1973a; Schneider 1980; Galloway 1985a) and included in the family Cladoniaceae (Eriksson 1999), it was recently shown to be more closely related to the family Sphaerophoraceae, supported by SSU rDNA phylogeny, anatomical and chemical similarities (Wedin & Döring 1999; Wedin et al. 2000a; Döring & Wedin 2000a, 2000b; Eriksson et al. 2004; Pennycook & Galloway 2004; Eriksson 2005). One species occurs widely throughout New Zealand. It is discussed by Yoshimura (1973a), Schneider (1980: 166–167), Galloway (1985a: 179–180), Filson (1992c: 145–146), Döring et al. (1999), Wedin & Döring (1999), Wedin et al. (2000a) and Wei & Ahti (2002).

Döring et al. (1999) described the ascoma ontogeny of Neophyllis melacarpa and concluded that the similarities found suggested this taxon to be closely related to Austropeltum glareosum. Both genera produce a boundary tissue though that in Neophyllis is non-pigmented. The taxonomic value of ascomatal stipes (podetia and pseudopodetia) is discussed in Döring et al. (1999) and in Wedin & Döring (1999) who conclude that podetial structures may prove to be useful characters when analysed carefully and supported by additional features. Pseudopodetial structures, however, are difficult to distinguish from other thalline outgrowths carrying ascomata in other groups, making it highly unlikely that pseudopodetia may be of any major taxonomic value. Podetia as well as pseudopodetia occur in at least two different well-supported monophyletic groups within the Lecanorales subord. Cladoniineae (the Sphaerophoraceae-Neophyllis-Austropeltum clade and the Cladoniaceae - Stereocaulaceae clade). Podetia are produced in Cladonia, Gymnoderma and in Calicium, and pseudopodetia occur in Pilophorus, Stereocaulon, Austropeltum and in Gymnoderma. Neither the presence of podetia or pseudopodetia seem to characterise larger groups of taxa corresponding to the traditional concepts of Cladoniaceae and Stereocaulaceae.