Flora of New Zealand Series

Stereocaulon wadei. Holotype: New Zealand. North I., Tongariro National Park, near Whakapapa, 1966, A.E. Wade s.n. – FH. Isotype – BM.

Description : Pseudopodetia caespitose, erect or straggling, 5–14 mm tall and 0.3–0.9 mm diam., terete, irregularly branched, in parts corticate (smooth to rimose), to decorticate and glabrous, to pulverulent-sorediate. Primary thallus effuse, granular-sorediate. Phyllocladia indistinct or poorly developed. Apical soralia effuse, 1–3(–5) mm diam., whitish, granular-pulverulent, developed on minute, corymbose, apical branchlets. Cephalodia subglobose, sessile to shortly stalked, 0.6–1.8 mm diam., blue-grey, scrobiculate to botryose-scrobiculate, sacculate, internally with loosely arranged lax hyphae. Apothecia not seen.

Chemistry : Cortex K+ yellow, C−, KC−. Pd−; containing atranorin, perlatolic, glomelliferic and glomellic acids.

N: Known only from the type locality.

Endemic

Stereocaulon wadei is characterised by: the terricolous/saxicolous habit; the apical soralia (developing on minute, corymbose apical branchlets) that are larger and more copiously developed than those in S. corticatulum; the more closely and distinctly scrobiculate cephalodia; and the characteristic chemistry of atranorin, perlatolic, glomelliferic and glomellic acids. The distinctive chemistry separates this species from both S. delisei and S. corticatulum.