Flora of New Zealand Series

Type : * Lichenoconium lichenicola (P.Karst.) Petr. & Syd. [* Coniothyrium lichenicola P.Karst.]

Description : Lichenicolous, parasites or saprophytes of lichenised fungi. Conidiomata pycnidia, scattered to somewhat aggregated, immersed to erumpent or superficial at maturity, subglobose to pyriform or cupuliform, black, lacking a clearly differentiated ostiole and opening by an often large, irregularly formed pore. Pycnidial wall of (1–)2–4(–6) layers of pseudoparenchymatous cells, polyhedral to rounded, sometimes laterally compressed, outer layers rather thick-walled and dark-brown, inner layers thinner-walled and generally hyaline. Conidiogenous cells lining internal wall of pycnidial cavity and extending up to apical pore, formed in a single layer, phialidic or proliferating and annellide-like with 1–2 annellations, subcylindrical to ampulliform, colourless throughout or becoming brownish and verruculose apically. Conidia arising singly from apices of conidiogenous cells, not adhering in chains, globose to pyriform or elongate–clavate, sometimes with a clearly differentiated truncate base, brown to dark-brown singly, but appearing black in mass, not distinctly guttulate, not septate, walls appearing smooth to coarsely verruculose or somewhat echinulate.

Lichenoconium, included in the Anamorphic Ascomyota (Lawrey & Diederich 2003), is a genus of 13 species worldwide (Diederich 2004f), all of which are lichenicolous fungi (Keissler 1930; Hawksworth 1977b, 1981, 2003; Christiansen 1980; Sutton 1980; Diederich 1986, 1989, 2004f; Alstrup & Hawksworth 1990; Kondratyuk et al. 1994; Triebel & Scholz 2001; Etayo 2002; Hafellner et al. 2002; Lawrey & Diederich 2003; Cole & Hawksworth 2004). Two species are presently known from New Zealand, but the genus is still very poorly collected and understood here. * L. usneae (Anzi) D.Hawksw. was recently reported as occurring in New Zealand (Hafellner et al. 2002: 306; Cole & Hawksworth 2004: 5), but the source of this information was not confirmed. A key to all known species is given in Cole & Hawksworth (2004).