Sticta microcyphellata Moncada & Lücking, 2012

Moncada, Bibiana & Lücking, Robert, 2012, Ten new species of Sticta and counting: Colombia as a hot spot for unrecognized diversification in a conspicuous macrolichen genus, Phytotaxa 74 (1), pp. 1-29 : 13-15

Sticta microcyphellata Moncada & Lücking , spec. nov. ( Fig. 5 )

MycoBank #801847

Differing from Sticta ainoae in the thelotremoid and tiny cyphellae occurring in more than 120 per cm 2, the dark tomentum up to the margin; the tomentose-hirsute apothecial margin, and the yellow-cream, K+ wine red medulla.

Holotype: — COLOMBIA. Norte de Santander: Parque Nacional Natural Tamá, trail from Quebrada La Pedrera to Paramito ; 2640 m; 10 Sep 2000, Moncada & Dávila 1024 ( UDBC; isotype: COL).

Primary photobiont green ( Dictyochloropsis ). Stipe absent. Thallus irregular, up to 30 cm diam., moderately branched, with 3–5 branches per 5 cm radius, branching dichotomous to polytomous; lobes laciniate, horizontal to weakly subpendulous, interspaced to imbricate, plane to involute, their apices obtuse to truncate, plane to involute, their margins entire, weakly thickened; lobe internodes 12–30 mm long, 7–15 mm broad; thallus coriaceous. Upper surface smooth to weakly foveolate, bright green when fresh, pale yellowishbrown in the herbarium, matt; surface glabrous, with papillae towards the margin, without pruina, with irregular, white maculae; marginal cilia present, sparse, fasciculate, brown to black, up to 0.5 mm long. Vegetative propagules absent. Apothecia sparse, predominantly submarginal, dispersed, pedicellate, with slight invagination on the lower side, up to 4 mm diam.; disc red-brown, shiny; margin tomentose to weakly hirsute, pale brown. Lower surface uneven, pale to dark brown; primary tomentum dense up to the margin, thin, spongy to arachnoid, soft, dark brown; secondary tomentum absent. Rhizines scattered, submarginal, fibrillose, brown, up to 5 mm long. Cyphellae more than 100 per cm 2 towards the thallus center and 100–200 per cm 2 towards the margin, aggregate, rounded, thelotremoid, immersed to erumpent, remaining below the level of the primary tomentum, with the margin elevated and involute, cream-colored, without tomentum; pore 0.05–0.2 mm diam.; basal membrane pubescent, cream-colored to yellowish, K – to K + pale yellow, C –, KC– to KC+ pale yellow, P –. Medulla compact, cream-colored to yellowish, K + pink to wine-red, C –, KC–, P –. No substances detected by TLC.

Upper cortex paraplectenchymatous, 35–45 µm thick, formed by two different layers: upper layer consisting of 1–2 cell layers with cells 2.5–4 µm diam., their walls 1.25 µm thick and their lumina rounded to isodiametric, 1.2–1.5 µm diam.; lower layer consisting of 3–4 cell layers; cells 6–11 µm diam., their walls 0.6–1.2 µm thick and their lumina rounded to isodiametric, 5–10 µm diam. Photobiont layer 20–30 µm thick, its cells 2.5–4 µm diam. Medulla 130–170 µm thick, its hyphae 2.5 µm broad, without crystals. Lower cortex paraplectenchymatous, 35–40 µm thick, with 3–4 cell layers; cells 6–14 µm diam., their walls 1.2–1.5 µm thick. Hairs of lower primary tomentum 70–200 µm long, in fascicles of 6–12, branched hyphae, septate with free apices. Cyphellae cavity 55–80 µm deep; cells of basal membrane without papillae. Apothecia biatorine, 500–700 µm high, with indistinct stipe; excipulum 100–120 µm broad, with tomentum. Hymenium 130–140 µm high; epihymenium 2.5–5 µm high, orange-brown, with gelatinous layer above. Ascospores 1–3-septate, fusiform, 30–40 × 5–7.5 µm, hyaline.

Distribution and Ecology: —South American Andes ( Colombia and Venezuela). The species is found between 1900 and 3700 m altitude in upper montane to subandine forests, in shaded to moderately exposed microsites on bark and sometimes on decaying organic matter. The liverwort genera Plagiochila and Radula Dumort. ( Dumortier 1822) and the lichen Leptogium phyllocarpon (Pers.) Mont. ( Montagne 1848) are commonly associated.

Etymology: —Among tropical green-algal species with large thalli, this species is characterized by extremely small cyphellae.

Remarks: —This new species is rather conspicuous due to its large, bright green thalli with rather broad, laciniate lobes, combined with very numerous, small, thelotremoid cyphellae. It is very similar to Sticta ainoae D. J. Galloway & J. Pickering ( Galloway & Pickering 1990) from southern South America (type in BM revised), which has a marginally pale lower tomentum (often thin or absent towards the margin) and slightly larger, less numerous cyphellae, with the pore being 0.1–0.5 mm in diam. (not 0.05–0.3 as stated by Galloway & Pickering 1990). Other differences include the white, K– or K+ weakly ochraceous medulla, the glabrous apothecial margins, and the smaller ascospores in S. ainoae . Within Colombia, S. microcyphellata is the only green species with thelotremoid cyphellae.

Additional specimens examined (paratypes): — COLOMBIA. Chocó: Mun. El Carmen de Atrato, Alto de Cortes ; 2600 m; 28 Feb 1944, Core 297 (US) . Huila: Mun. San Agustín, Páramo de las Papas , mountains and surroundings of Lagunas La Magdalena and Santiago ; 3530–3630 m; 5–19 Sep 1985, Bischler 652 ( COL) . Norte de Santander: Mun. Toledo, Hoya de Samaria ; 2100 m; 30 Oct 1941, Cuatrecasas et al. 12795 ( COL) . Parque Nacional Natural Tamá, Sector Orocué ; 2800 m; 25 Apr 1981, Ruiz s.n. ( COL) . Santander: Mun. Charalá, Virolín , lower part of Cuchilla El Fara; 1820 m; 12 Nov 1984, Castro & Cruz 378 ( COL) . Valle del Cauca: Mun. El Silencio, Yanaconas; 1900–2200 m; 28 Feb 1944, Killip & García 33780 ( COL) .

VENEZUELA. Táchira : Páramo de Tamá , base of Cobre Chiquito; 2400 m; 28 Mar 1979, López Figueiras & Hale 45614 ( US) . Villa Paez-Betania; 2550 m; 18 May 1967, Steyermark & Dunsterville 98372 ( US); ibid., southeast of Santa Ana, Río Quinimarí ; 2400 m; 10 Jan 1968, Steyermark & Dunsterville 100638 ( US) .

Figures

FIGURE 5. Sticta microcyphellata (holotype collection). A. Upper side of thallus. B. Lower side of thallus. C. Lower surface. D. Lower surface enlarged. E. Detail of lower tomentum and cyphellae. F. Apothecium. G. Microscopic section through thallus and cyphella. H. Microscopic section through thallus enlarged, showing lower tomentum. Scale in A–C = 10 mm, in D = 5 mm, in E and F = 1 mm, in G = 10 µm, in H = 50 µm.