Flora of New Zealand Series

≡Verrucaria pyrenastroides C.Knight, Trans. Linn. Soc. 23: 100 (1860).

≡Astrothelium pyrenastroides (C.Knight) C.Knight, Trans. N. Z. Inst. 8: 322 (1876).

≡Parmentaria pyrenastroides (C.Knight) Müll.Arg., Bull. Herb. Boissier2, App. 1: 97 (1894).

Lectotype: New Zealand. Sine loco [probably Auckland], Charles Knight 310a – BM [fide Galloway (1985a: 354)].

Description : Flora (1985: 354).

N: Auckland to Wellington. On bark of trees and shrubs in open forest or forest remnants. Known also from Tasmania (McCarthy 2003c, 2006).

Australasian

Illustrations : Knight (1860: pl. XI, fig. 12 – as Verrucaria pyrenastroides; 1876: pl. X, fig. 18; 1877: pl. XXXVII, fig. 19 – as Astrothelium pyrenastroides); Nylander (1888: tab. 1, fig.1 – as Astrothelium pyrenastroides).

Exsiccata : Lojka (1886: No. 149 – as Astrothelium pyrenastroides C. Knight) – BM, UPS, WELT.

Pyrenula pyrenastroides is characterised by: the corticolous habit; the yellowish olive to fawnish, waxy, glossy thallus, developed in bands or patches 2–8(–12) cm diam., and with scattered, minute, white spots (×10 lens); flattened to slightly swollen perithecia (1–4 in a stroma) in scattered, rounded to irregular verrucae; and broadly ellipsoidal or oblong, muriform (7–11 transverse and 2–5 vertical septa) ascospores, brown at maturity, 60–70 × 30–35 μm.