Flora of New Zealand Series

Holotype: New Zealand. North Island. Wellington, Tongariro National Park, 9 km NE of Ohakune, close to Mountain Road along Blyth Track, 39º22's, 175º29'E, 930 m, in mixed Nothofagus menziesii – N. solandri forest, on decorticated stump, 3,vi.1981, L. Tibell 13588 – UPS.

Description : On old wood, commonly with colonies of free-living Trentepohlia or with lichens having Trentepohlia as photobiont, especially species of Arthonia. Apothecia 0.4–0.7 mm tall. Capitulum black, obconical to lenticular, 0.14–0.30 mm diam., usually with white, cottony hyphae on lower surface giving impression of pruina. Stalk black, shining, 0.04–0.05 mm diam., of periclinally arranged hyphae, c. 3 μm diam., swelling strongly in K, intense red, with or without amorphous red crystals, red colour intensifying in K. Epithecium thin, brown. Hypothecium pale- to medium-brown, 65–90 μm thick. Exciple 8–10 μm thick, of periclinally arranged, reddish brown hyphae. Asci 34–42 × 2.2–3.3 μm, cylindrical, apex thickened and penetrated by a fine canal. Ascospores uniseriate or partly biseriate in asci, medium-brown, ellipsoidal, smooth, 1-septate, 6–7.8 × 2.2–3.3 μm; septum thin.

N: Northland (Omahuta State Forest) to Wellington (Tararua Ra.). S: Nelson (Lake Rotoiti) to Southland (Oblong Hill near Lake Hauroko). On lignum (especially decorticated stumps) of Nothofagus solandri, also on lignum of Agathis australis and Podocarpus totara, 130–960 m. Known also from Australia, South America and Japan (Tibell & Thor 2003).

Circum-Pacific

Illustrations : Tibell (1987: 152, fig. 112; 153, fig. 113).

Chaenothecopsis sanguinea is characterised by: often having a white, pruina-like cover of cottony hyphae on the lower side of the capitulum, black stalks in incident light, and a reddish yellow colour of the stalk (in section) unchanged in H but intensifying in K.