Flora of New Zealand Series

Holotype: New Zealand. Canterbury, Banks Peninsula, Hay Reserve, 4.xi.1993, E.J. Godley s.n. – CHR. Isotypes – AKU, BM, CBG, WELT.

Description : Thallus erect to subpendulous, 3–8.5(–11) cm long, attached by a delimited holdfast, branching dichotomous, dense at apex, sometimes producing a palmate branch, corticolous. Branches 1–7(–13) mm wide, deeply canaliculate, apices pointed. Surface matt, smooth or wrinkled, pale-green to yellow-green. Pseudocyphellae basal, marginal and centripetal-laminal. Soralia absent. Apothecia numerous, subpedicellate, marginal and subterminal or terminal, spurred; disc 1–6(–8) mm diam., concave to plane, wrinkled, exciple with scattered pseudocyphellae, margins entire to incised. Ascospores ellipsoidal, curved, (9.5–)11.5–16 × 4–6 μm.

Chemistry : Usnic acid.

S: North Canterbury to Southland (Invercargill) [map in Bannister et al. (2004: 132, fig. 8)]. On a variety of native and introduced trees and shrubs, rarely on rock, s.l. to 400 m.

Endemic

Illustrations : Blanchon et al. (1996a: 78, fig. 7D; 85, fig. 9D).

Ramalina inflexa is characterised by: the corticolous habit; prominent laminal and marginal pseudocyphellae on canaliculate branches; concave, pedicellate apothecia with pseudsocyphellae on exciple; and usnic acid as sole secondary metabolite.