Cladonia macilenta
=C. bacillaris Genth, Fl. Nassau: 406 (1835).
Description : Flora (1985: 105 – as C. bacillaris, 115). See also Archer (1988: 208; 1992b: 129).
Chemistry : Cortex K+ yellow or K−, C−, KC−, Pd+ yellow or Pd−; containing barbatic acid (major), ±4- O -demethylbarbatic acid (tr.), ±didymic acid (major), ±condidymic acid (tr.) ± thamnolic acid or rarely squamatic acid (major) and consquamatic acid (minor).
N: Northland (Three Kings Is, Karikari Peninsula, Puketi Forest), Auckland (Rangitoto I.), South Auckland (Hunua Ra., Coromandel Peninsula, Orakei near Rotorua), Wellington (Waipakahi Valley Kaimanawa Mts, Raetihi, Pohangina River, Wellington Botanical Gardens, Wainuiomata). S: Nelson (Lead Hills), Westland (Mokihinui, Omoeroa Saddle Waiho River), Canterbury (Ashburton), Otago (Cameron Flat Makarora, Canyon Creek Ahuriri Valley, Lake Mackay Pisa Ra., Rock & Pillar Ra., Leith Saddle, Swampy Summit, Waipori Gorge, Maungatua), Southland (Pukerau, Makarewa, Awarua Bay, Mt Burns, Lake Hauroko, Cascade Creek, Homer). In lowland to subalpine peat bogs, on decaying logs in open grassland, Nothofagus forest or Leptospermum shrubland, on soil along roadsides, mainly lowland and coastal, s.l. to 800 m. Known also from Great Britain, Europe, Scandinavia, North America, the neotropics, Brazil, and Australia (Purvis et al. 1992; Nimis 1993; Santesson 1993; Esslinger & Egan 1995; Ahti 2000; Brodo et al. 2001; Aptroot 2002e; Ahti & Hammer 2002; McCarthy 2003c, 2006; Santesson et al. 2004; Ahti & De Priest 2006).
Cosmopolitan
Illustrations : Galløe (1954: 31, pls 35–40); Jahns (1980: 207, fig. 479); Wirth (1987: 151; 1995b: 305D, 331); Krog et al. (1994: 160); Goward (1999: 126, fig. 15A); Dobson (2000: 121; 2005: 131); Brodo et al. (2001: 259, pl. 243).
Cladonia macilenta is distinguished from C. weymouthii by the shorter podetia and the smaller corticate area at the base of the podetia. Podetia of C. macilenta are usually less than 20 mm tall whereas those of C. weymouthii are generally more than 30 mm tall with the lower third of the podetia in this latter species being corticate. Christensen (1987) contends that there is no morphological, ontogenetic or ecological differences between C. bacillaris and C. macilenta. The united taxon is called C. macilenta Hoffm. Ahti (2000: 208–210) discusses typification of Cladonia macilenta and gives a detailed synonymy that includes the taxa C. bacillaris Genth, and C. balfourii Cromb.
Recently, Ahti & De Priest (2005: 183–184) have presented a strong case for the conservation of Baeomyces bacillaris Ach. (the basionym of Cladonia bacillaris) noting…"in recent times many authors have followed Christensen (1987: 61–69) who regarded Cladonia bacillaris as a mere (nameless) barbatic acid chemotype of C. macilenta …More recent, but still insufficient data, from molecular systematics indicate that C. macilenta is not uniform (Stenroos et al. 2002)…".
