Flora of New Zealand Series

Holotype: New Zealand. Canterbury, Hanmer State Forest, Dog Stream, 42º30's, 172º51'E, c. 450 m, on Leptogium azureum, 12.ix.1981, H. Mayrhofer 2333 – GZU.

Description : Lichenicolous on thalli of Leptogium. Pseudothecia perithecioid, crowded, on apothecial disc of host lichen, sessile, with base immersed in substratum, ±spherical, 130–170 × 11–120 μm, swollen side of pseudothecia pale, ostiole black. Exciple at first hyaline, becoming red-brown to brown-black, 10–15 μm thick. Periphysoids branched, 10–15 μm long. Interascal filaments crowded, sparingly branched, 1.5–3 μm thick. Asci clavate, fissitunicate, thick-walled, 8-spored, 55–70 × 10–13 μm. All tissues I−. Ascospores colourless, thick-walled, ovoid, fusiform or ellipsoidal, sometimes with apical, filiform gelatinous appendages, without a perispore, 11.5–19 × 4.5–5.5 μm.

S: Canterbury. Known only from the type collection.

Endemic

Host : The protologue gives Leptogium azureum as host for this lichenicolous fungus, but since L. azureum s. str., does not occur in New Zealand, it is likely to be L. aucklandicum (Galloway 1999: 321) (q.v.) that is the host for this species.

Illustrations : Hoffmann & Hafellner (2000: 77, fig. 15; fig. 44).

* Myxophora apotheciicola is characterised by: the lichenicolous habit; the Leptogium aucklandicum apothecial disc host substratum; thick-walled, clavate asci; and simple, colourless, thick-walled ascospores, sometimes with filiform, gelatinous appendages at apices.