Flora of New Zealand Series

≡Lecidea furfuracea Pers. in C. Gaudichaud, Voy. Uranie Bot.: 192 (1827).

Description : Thallus effuse, formed by prothallus and partly by minute areolae that often fuse and form a continuous crust, and partly by isidia developing directly from prothallus, isidia often dominating. Prothallus indistinct to well-developed, white to reddish brown. Areolae adnate, to 0.1 mm diam., isodiametric, plane to weakly convex, medium-green to dark-green, glabrous or rarely pubescent at margins. Isidia usually abundant, medium-thick, often long, medium-green to dark-green, often with a brownish tinge, glabrous, simple to coralloid-branched. Apothecia common, to 2 mm diam., round to irregular, usually conglomerate, convex, pale-brown to dark reddish brown, immarginate or with an indistinct often slightly paler, glabrous or pubescent margin. Exciple pale-brown, containing colourless crystals, dissolving in K. Hypothecium with yellow-brown to orange crystals, dissolving and diffusing pale-yellow to red or purple in K. Hymenium yellow-brown, 60–70 μm. Ascospores simple, cylindrical to short-fusiform, (6–)9–12 × 2–2.5 μm.

Chemistry : Furfuracein (Brako 1991: 46).

N: Northland (Three Kings Is), Wellington (Greatford). On coastal Metrosideros excelsa and Melicytus. Still very poorly collected in New Zealand. Earlier recorded as Phyllopsora cf. haemophaea (Galloway 1992d; Malcolm & Galloway 1997). Known also from North, Central and South America, the Caribbean, East Africa, Madagascar, Thailand, Java, and Australia (Kalb 1990; Brako 1991; Wolseley et al. 2002; McCarthy 2003c, 2006).

Pantropical

Illustrations : Brako (1991: 45, fig. 19D); Timdal & Krog (2001: 79, fig. 10).

Phyllopsora furfuracea is characterised by: the corticolous habit; its small, isidiate squamules; apothecia with a yellow-brown to orange crystalline material; medium-sized ascospores; and furfuracein.