Flora of New Zealand Series

Holotype: New Zealand. Auckland, Kawakawa Bay, Papanui Point, 36º56's, 175º13'E, 0–20 m on coastal rock, on Pertusaria melanospora, 8.i.1985, H. Mayrhofer 5883 & G. Samuels – GZU. Topotypes – GZU, Herb. Diederich, M.

Description : Apothecia at first immersed, becoming erumpent, rarely gall-forming, scattered or clustered together, black, ±rounded, sometimes elongate, 150–225(–500) μm diam, to 500 μm long when elongate; margin in opened apothecia 70–105 μm thick (to 100–150 μm in largest apothecia), striate, sometimes with several deep fissures and appearing cruciate; pore 10–30 μm diam. Exciple laterally greenish to olivaceous, K+ olivaceous-brown, 20–45 μm thick, basally greenish violet, with a reddish brown, K+ purple or violet pigment, 25–45 μm thick; excipular hairs olivaceous, straight, wall not apically thickened, 15–30 × 3–4 μm. Hypothecium hyaline, 10–20 μm thick. Hymenium 35–60 μm tall; epithecium colourless to pale olivaceous. Hamathecium of paraphyses, filiform, simple, 1.5–2.5 μm thick. Asci subcylindrical, wall apically thickened, (6–) 8-spored, 35–55 × 4.5–6.5 μm. Ascospores hyaline, ellipsoidal, simple, biguttulate, (5–)6–12 × 3–4(–4.5) μm, exceptionally 1-septate.

N: Auckland (Kawakawa Bay), South Auckland (Whale Bay SW of Raglan), Wellington (Titahi Bay, Miramar Peninsula, Cape Palliser Road). S: Marlborough (Whites Bay NE of Blenheim). On coastal rocks. Known also from Mallorca, East Africa (Kenya), USA (New Mexico), Mexico (Baja California), Chile (Juan Fernandez Archipelago) and South Australia (Diederich & Etayo 2000: 442).

?Cosmopolitan

Hosts : Species of Pertusaria, in New Zealand P. melanospora.

Illustrations : Diederich & Etayo (2000: 441, figs 3A, 4A, B).

* Skyttea mayrhoferi is characterised by: the lichenicolous habit; the presence of a reddish brown, K+ weakly purple to violet excipular pigment; broad ascospores (much larger than in any other species in the genus); large apothecia (with a fissured margin), that are often aggregated and irregular.