Flora of New Zealand Series

=Dermatocarpon (Catopyrenium) insigne Zahlbr., Denkschr. Akad. Wiss. Wien math.-naturwiss. Kl. 104: 252 (1941).

≡Catapyrenium insigne (Zahlbr.) D.J.Galloway, DSIR Land Resources Sci. Rept 26: 6 (1992).

Dermatocarpon(Catopyrenium)insigne. Type. New Zealand. South I., Otago, Black Head near Dunedin, on coastal rock, J.S. Thomson T405 [ZA 106] – OTA 029078.

Description : Thallus thin, continuous, smooth, without points or ridges, medium-green, glossy, noticeably gelatinous when moist. Internally thallus is densely packed with green photobiont cells 3–6(–9) μm diam. Perithecia numerous, superficial, hemispherical to subconical, (0.20–)0.27(–0.34) mm diam. Ostiole central, very narrow. Involucrellum glossy, black, extending down to exciple-base level. Exciple medium-grey to brown-black, 15–20 μm thick. Periphyses 0.7–1.0 μm diam., to 20 μm long, unbranched. Ascospores ellipsoidal, 7–10(–12) × 4–7 μm.

N: Northland (Poor Knights Is). S: Otago (Black Head Dunedin) On mid-littoral intertidal rocks. Known also from northern and western Eurasia, USA, Canada and Greenland, Taiwan, Japan, Chile, Marion I., the South Orkney Is, Antarctica and NE Australia (Rogers 1988; Øvstedal & Gremmen 2001; Øvstedal & Lewis Smith 2001: 358; McCarthy 1991e; 2001j: 184; 2003c; Aptroot 2003a).

Cosmopolitan

Illustrations : Rogers (1988: 182, fig. 1 – as Verrucaria cribbii); Foucard (1990: fig. 338); McCarthy (1991b: 331, fig. 8A); Dobson (1992: 352; 2000: 401; 2005: 450); Flenniken & Gibson (2003: 41, 47, 48).

Verrucaria halizoa is characterised by: the coastal rock habit; a smooth, green, subgelatinous thallus with black, hemispherical to subconical perithecia, and minute ascospores (7–10 × 4–7 μm). It is similar to V. mucosa but is distinguished from that species by the thallus colour and the dome-shaped perithecia.