Flora of New Zealand Series

Type : Pycnothelia papillaria Dufour

Description : Thallus dimorphic, Cladonia -like. Primary thallus persistent, forming a basal crust of granules or squamules. Photobiont chlorococcoid. Secondary thallus of simple or sparingly branched podetia arising from basal crust, podetia terete, hollow, without scyphi, terminated by apothecia. Ascomata apothecia, hymenial discs, small, clustered, peltate to swollen, convex, conglomerate, dark-brown to black. Hamathecium of paraphyses. Asci Cladonia -type. Ascospores simple to 1–(2–4)-septate, colourless, elongate-fusiform. Conidiomata pycnidia, apical or laminal. Conidia thead-like, curved.

Pycnothelia, included in the family Cladoniaceae (Stenroos et al. 2002c; Eriksson et al. 2004; Pennycook & Galloway 2004; Eriksson 2005), is a genus of two species, one being widespread on peaty or leached sandy or clay soils in the Northern Hemisphere (Purvis et al. 1992: 515) and one occurring on exposed heathland and moorland in the South I. of New Zealand and in Tasmania (Galloway & James 1987; Kantvilas 1992b; 1996b).