Flora of New Zealand Series

≡Peltigera canina var. lepidophora Vain., Meddel. Soc. Fauna Fl. fennica 2: 49 (1878).

Description : Thallus small, (0.5–)1–2(–4) cm diam., rounded, level with or slightly sunken into substratum. Lobes concave, often crowded, ±cochleate, rarely ±plane, 2–6(–8) mm diam. Margins entire, sinuous, ascending, ±inrolled. Upper surface dark slatey blue-black to brownish when wet, olive-brownish to red-brown when dry, coriaceous, thinly white-tomentose in parts, or ±glabrous centrally and tomentose only at margins; isidiate. Isidia small, 0.2–0.5(–1) mm tall, rounded, corticate, button-like at first, becoming lobed with age, pale to dark red-brown, scattered to densely crowded. Lower surface pale yellow-buff to greyish or brownish, roughly tomentose. Veins indistinct. Rhizines scattered, simple to ±fasciculate, pale-buff to brown, 1–2 mm long. Apothecia not seen.

Chemistry : TLC−, all reactions negative.

S: Nelson (Mt Arthur), Canterbury (Castle Hill, upper Ashburton River, Rangitata Gorge, lower Godley Valley, Maitland Valley, Lake Ohau), Otago (Matukituki River), Southland (Eyre Mts, Symmetry Peaks) [map in Galloway (2000d: 18, fig. 6)]. On sandy often calcareous exposed, gravelly, rather unvegetated soils and in sand of riverbeds and streams, in upland to alpine habitats, to 2000 m. Associating with Arthrorhaphis citrinella, Candelariella vitellina, Cladia aggregata, species of Cladonia, Lecanora epibryon ssp. broccha, Lecidella wulfenii, and Rinodina olivaceobrunnea. Moribund thalli sometimes colonised by Candellariella vitellina, Lecidella wulfenii and Rinodina olivaceobrunnea. In sand of riverbeds it occurs with soil-binding species of Placopsis such as P. clavifera, P. hertelii, P. subparellina and P. trachyderma. Still very poorly known in New Zealand. Circumpolar in the Northern Hemisphere (North America, Europe, Asia), also in Hawai'i [as P. spuria (Magnusson & Zahlbruckner 1943: 96)] and South America where it is known from Argentina and Chile (Vitikainen 1994b, 2001, 2004a).

Bipolar

Illustrations : Yoshimura (1973b: 536, fig. 1); Moberg & Holmåsen (1982: 175); Thomson (1984: 338); Goffinet & Hastings (1994: 29, fig. 46); Goward et al. (1994b: 98, fig. 14A); Vitikainen (1994b: 52, fig. 94); Hansen (1995: 50).

Peltigera lepidophora is characterised by: the terricolous habit; the small, ±cochleate lobes growing directly on soil, and with a tomentose upper surface and scattered to crowded, laminal isidia. It is similar in gross morphology to the juvenile, sorediate phase of P. didactyla, but is distinguished from it by the presence of isidia and an absence of soredia.