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Lichens A-Pac (2007) - Flora of New Zealand Lichens - Revised Second Edition A-Pac
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Muellerella Hepp

MUELLERELLA Hepp, 1862

Type : * Muellerella polyspora Hepp ex Müll.Arg.

Description : Lichenicolous, immersed in thalli and ascomata of host. Ascomata perithecia, 70–400 μm diam, broadly spherical, twice as broad as high, black; wall carbonised, a pseudoparenchyma of textura angularis. Paraphysoids and pseudoparaphyses absent, but periphyses and numerous periphysoids present. Asci broadly clavate to subcylindrical, thick-walled, (16–)24–100-spored. Ascospores oval, ellipsoidal, oblong to bacillar, simple to 3-septate, hyaline at first becoming pale- to dark-brown at maturity, thin- or thick-walled with a smooth perispore. Conidiomata pycnidia, immersed, 40–100 μm diam. Conidia bacillar, colourless, simple.

Key

1
Perithecia (70–)100–125(–150) μm diam., immersed; asci with c. 100 ascospores; ascospores pale-brown, 5–7(–8) × 2–3(–4) μm, thin-walled; on Amandinea decedens, Caloplaca, Rinodina peloleuca, at lower altitudes, often on basic substrata
* lichenicola
Perithecia (100–)150–250(–400) μm diam., superficial; asci with 16–64 ascospores; ascospores dark-brown, thick-walled, (7.5–)8–10(–13) × (3.5–)4–5(–6) μm; on Lecidea atromorio, L. lapicida, subalpine to high-alpine, on acid rocks
* pygmaea

Muellerella is a genus of 12 species, all lichenicolous or bryophilous (Santesson 1960; Hawksworth 1979b, 2003; Diederich 1986, 2003; Triebel 1989; Alstrup & Hawksworth 1990; Matzer 1993; Sérusiaux et al. 1999; Triebel & Kainz 2004a). It is included in the family Verrucariaceae (Eriksson et al. 2004: Pennycook & Galloway 2004). Muellerella is a pyrenocarpous genus characterised by perithecia producing brown, 1-septate ascospores in multispored asci. Two species are so far recorded from New Zealand, but the genus is still very poorly studied and collected here.

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