Flora of New Zealand Series

≡Peltidea malacea Ach., Syn. meth. Lich.: 240 (1814).

Description : Thallus rosette-forming to irregularly spreading, 2–5(–8) cm diam. Lobes broadly rounded 1–2(–3) cm wide and 4–6 cm long, and 1–1.5 mm thick. Margins entire, slightly thickened below, plane to wavy, inrolled, ±subascending, without soredia or phyllidia, often with a rim of erect, compact tomentum (×10 lens). Upper surface glabrous, coriaceous, matt or glossy, olive-brownish or greenish brown centrally, suffused dark red-brown towards margins, without soredia or phyllidia, undulate, shallowly wrinkled, here and there with longitudinal cracks or tears. Lower surface without veins, ±continuously felted-tomentose (rarely with a few scattered, white interstitial areas close to margins), pale creamish buff at margins (greyish white in exposed alpine forms) soon becoming greyish to brownish black or ±blackened centrally. Rhizines sparse, widely scattered, short, bushy-tufted, densely fasciculate, 1–3 mm long, black or brown-black to greyish. Apothecia not seen.

Chemistry : Gyrophoric acid, methyl gyrophorate, tenuiorin, zeorin, dolichorrhizin and several unidentified triterpenoids. Holtan-Hartwig (1993) distinguishes four chemodemes.

S: Canterbury (Torlesse Ra., Godley Valley, Murchison Valley), Otago (Matukituki Valley, Wanaka, W Hunter Valley, Bedford Valley, Earnslaw, Maungatua) [map in Galloway (2000d: 20, fig. 7)]. In subalpine to high-alpine grassland and fellfield, among mosses and debris in damp sites, 300–2300 m. Still rather poorly known and collected in New Zealand. Known also from boreal and arctic zones, less common in temperate lowlands, rare or lacking in oceanic areas of North America, Europe and Asia (see Vitikainen 1994b: 60, 2004). It is not known from Australia (Filson 1996; McCarthy 2003c, 2006).

Bipolar

Illustrations : Moberg & Holmåsen (1982: 176); Thomson (1984: 339); Wirth (1987: 345; 1995a: 687); Holtan-Hartwig (1993: 51, figs 58, 59); Goward et al. (1994b: 99, fig. 17A); Vitikainen (1994b: 59, fig. 100); Hansen (1995: 50); Johnson et al. (1995: 349); McCune & Geiser (1997: 211); Brodo et al. (2001: 514, pls 604, 605).

Peltigera malacea is characterised by: the terricolous/muscicolous habit; its broad, very thick lobes, indistinct veins of the lower surface, forming a ±continuous greyish to blackish or brown-black, felty layer that projects at the margins as an erect, brownish fringe.