Cladonia pertricosa
Description : Basal squamules inconspicuous, persistent or evanescent, 2–3 mm long, 0.5–1 mm wide, or rarely conspicuous and persistent, 3–6 mm long and 1–3 mm wide, irregularly lobed, margins crenate, esorediate. Podetia developing from surface or margins of basal squamules, or often dying at base, 1–3 cm tall, with fertile podetia 0.5–1.0 mm diam., and sterile podetia 0.2–0.5 mm diam., much branched, axils open or closed; branching mainly irregularly dichotomous to somewhat polytomous at apices, without cups. Surface esorediate, occasionally squamulose, greyish white, apices dark-brown, cortex smooth becoming verrucose towards apices. Apothecia terminal, clustered, 0.2–0.4 mm diam., flat to subconcave, brown to dark-brown. Pycnidia terminal, 0.2 × 0.1 mm, cylindrical, dark-brown.
Chemistry : Cortex K+ yellow, C−, KC−, Pd− or + yellow; containing thamnolic acid (major) with barbatic acid in apothecia, or rarely with squamatic and consquamatic acids (Archer 1992b: 132).
N: South Auckland (Monument Hill near Thames, S. of Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula, Ruakura, Karapiti Stream, Huka Falls, Taupo), Wellington (Te Mari lava flow, Tongariro National Park, Kitchener Park, Feilding). S: Nelson (Botanical Hill). Canterbury (Lewis Pass, Arthur's Pass, Torlesse Ra., Kirkliston Ra.), Otago (Conical Hill, Humboldt Mts, Column Rocks Pisa Ra., Manorburn Dam, Mt Kyeburn, Mt Pisgah Kakanui Mts, S of Sutton, Swampy Summit, Flagstaff Dunedin), Southland (Cascade Creek, Awarua Bay). On soil, in subalpine heaths, on roadside banks, on rotting logs in beech forest, on dry peat, clay, fenceposts, on rock (lava), on veneer of soil overlying schist tors and outcrops in grassland, beneath Leptospermum scoparium. Known also from Australia (McCarthy 2003c, 2006).
Australasian
Illustrations : Hammer (2001: 15–15, figs 1–6).
Cladonia pertricosa is characterised by: the thin, greyish white, branched, brittle podetia. It is distinguished from the somewhat similar C. mitis by the presence of thamnolic acid (K+ yellow).
