Flora of New Zealand Series

=Pertusaria galactina Zahlbr., Denkschr. Akad. Wiss. Wien math.-maturwiss. Kl. 104: 332 (1941).

Holotype: New Zealand. Sine loco [probably Wellington], 1883, Dr Knight – G 638/8.

Pertusaria galactina. Holotype: New Zealand. Forest remnant near Feilding, c. 150 m, on Melicytus ramiflorus, xii. 1933, H.H. Allan ZA 460 – W. Isotype – CHR 361430.

Description : Flora (1985: 376).

Chemistry : TLC−, all reactions negative.

N: Northland (Bay of Islands) to Wellington (Feilding, Wellington). S: Otago (Matanaka). On bark of lowland and often coastal shrubs, e.g. Avicennia marina, Coprosma sp. and Melicytus ramiflorus. Also in Australia where it it occurs on mangroves in New South Wales (Archer & Elix 1993a: 149; Archer 1997: 104, 2004a: 146; McCarthy 2003c, 2006).

Australasian

Ilustration : Archer (1991c: 229, fig.1 – as P. altropunctata).

Pertusaria melaleucoides is characterised by: the corticolous habit; asci with 2 ascospores; conspicuous black ostioles; and the absence of secondary compounds. Superficially it resembles some species of Lecidea, but the large, double-walled ascospores easily distinguish it.