Notes on the amphipacific relations of Hawaiian Cladoniaceae

The total number of currently accepted species of Cladoniaceae in the Hawaiian Islands is 22. Several taxonomic problems still exist, however. The effects of isolation are clear among Cladoniaceae. Endemism is high (c. 40%); and, the number of species low. The species must have reached the archipelago via long-distance trans-oceanic dispersal, probably aided by the abundant production of lichen propagules, such as soredia and microsquamules. Although most of the species found in Hawaii are widely distributed, the Hawaiian Cladoniaceae show slight affinities to those of E and SE Asia. Cladonia polyphylla Mont. & v.d. Bosch is an older name for C. fruticulosa Krempelh., and is lectotypified from authentic material. C. leprosula H. Magn. is included in C. ochrochlora Flörke

Nuevos datos sobre nomenclatura, taxonomía y distribución de algunas especies del género "Cladonia"

The name Cladonia diversa Asperges ex S. Stenroos is validated, and the species is reported as new to Japan. Cladonia angustiloba, earlier known from Macaronesia, is reported to extend to Faeroe Is., Denmark. Cladonia aspera Ahti & Kashiw. is an illegitimate later homonym of C. aspera (Flörke) Doign. The former name is still regarded as a synonym of C. sarmentosa, while the latter name is a synonym of C. gracilis subsp. gracilis. The type of C. dilleniana is stated to be from Bahama Islands rather than Turks and Caicos Islands. The volcano lichen C. vulcani is recorded from Iceland as new to Europe. The author citation of C. bacilliformis (Nyl.) Sarnth. and type location citation of C. glauca Flörke are corrected.Se valida el nombre Cladonia diversa Asperges ex S. Stenroos y se reporta nueva para Japón. Cladonia angustiloba, anteriormente conocida de la Macaronesia extiende su área de distribución hasta las islas Feroe, Dinamarca. Cladonia aspera Ahti & Kashiw. es el último homónimo ilegitimo de C. aspera (Flörke) Doign. El primer nombre válido es considerado un sinónimo de C. sarmentosa, mientras que este último es un sinónimo de C. gracilis subsp. gracilis. El tipo de C. dilleniana procede de las islas Bahamas en lugar de las islas Turcos y Caicos. El liquen de los volcanes C. vulcani se cita de Islandia y constituye nueva cita para Europa. Se corrige la autoría de C. bacilliformis (Nyl.) Sarnth. y la indicación locotípica de C. glauca Flörke

The lichen family Cladoniaceae in Paraiba, Pernambuco and Sergipe, Northeast Brazil

Field and herbarium studies of the lichen family Cladoniaceae in the states of Paraíba, Pernambuco and Sergipe, Northeast Brazil, yielded 22 species, many of them being new reports for the region. The phenolic compounds identified in each species are reported. Cladonia clathrata Ahti & Xavier Filho, Cladonia polita Ahti, Cladonia polyscypha Ahti & Xavier Filho, and Cladonia rugicaulis Ahti are described as new. C. clathrata, C. rhodoleuca Vainio, C. rugicaulis, C. salzmannii Nyl., and C. subminiata Stenroos appear to represent an element confined to northeastern Brazil

Global Biodiversity Patterns of the Photobionts Associated with the Genus Cladonia (Lecanorales, Ascomycota)

The diversity of lichen photobionts is not fully known. We studied here the diversity of the photobionts associated with Cladonia, a sub-cosmopolitan genus ecologically important, whose photobionts belong to the green algae genus Asterochloris. The genetic diversity of Asterochloris was screened by using the ITS rDNA and actin type I regions in 223 specimens and 135 species of Cladonia collected all over the world. These data, added to those available in GenBank, were compiled in a dataset of altogether 545 Asterochloris sequences occurring in 172 species of Cladonia. A high diversity of Asterochloris associated with Cladonia was found. The commonest photobiont lineages associated with this genus are A. glomerata, A. italiana, and A. mediterranea. Analyses of partitioned variation were carried out in order to elucidate the relative influence on the photobiont genetic variation of the following factors: mycobiont identity, geographic distribution, climate, and mycobiont phylogeny. The mycobiont identity and climate were found to be the main drivers for the genetic variation of Asterochloris. The geographical distribution of the different Asterochloris lineages was described. Some lineages showed a clear dominance in one or several climatic regions. In addition, the specificity and the selectivity were studied for 18 species of Cladonia. Potentially specialist and generalist species of Cladonia were identified. A correlation was found between the sexual reproduction frequency of the host and the frequency of certain Asterochloris OTUs. Some Asterochloris lineages co-occur with higher frequency than randomly expected in the Cladonia species.Peer reviewe

Orvo Vitikainen, an 80th birthday tribute

Peer reviewe

Genetic variation and factors affecting the genetic structure of the lichenicolous fungus Heterocephalacria bachmannii (Filobasidiales, Basidiomycota)

Heterocephalacria bachmannii is a lichenicolous fungus that takes as hosts numerous lichen species of the genus Cladonia. In the present study we analyze whether the geographical distance, the host species or the host secondary metabolites determine the genetic structure of this parasite. To address the question, populations mainly from the Southern Europe, Southern Finland and the Azores were sampled. The specimens were collected from 20 different host species representing ten chemotypes. Three loci, ITS rDNA, LSU rDNA and mtSSU, were sequenced. The genetic structure was assessed by AMOVA, redundance analyses and Bayesian clustering methods. The results indicated that the host species and the host secondary metabolites are the most influential factors over the genetic structure of this lichenicolous fungus. In addition, the genetic structure of H. bachmannii was compared with that of one of its hosts, Cladonia rangiformis. The population structure of parasite and host were discordant. The contents in phenolic compounds and fatty acids of C. rangiformis were quantified in order to test whether it had some influence on the genetic structure of the species. But no correlation was found with the genetic clusters of H. bachmannii.Peer reviewe

Taxonomic notes on Pycnothelia Dufour and Gymnoderma Nyl. (Cladoniaceae) in Madagascan Region

This study was focused on two species of lichen-forming fungi from Madagascan Region whose taxonomy has been controversial over the years, Cladonia mascarena Nyl. and Heterodea madagascarea Nyl. While some authors considered C. mascarena to belong to Cladonia, others place it in Pycnothelia Dufour. In this study three loci (ITS rDNA, rpb2 and ef1 alpha) were used to determine the phylogenetic placement of C. mascarena. Our results show that it belongs to Pycnothelia and the combination Py cnothelia mascarena (Nyl.) Nyl. is substantiated. In addition, a key to the genus Pycnothelia is provided. The morphological study of new specimens of Gymnoderma coccocarpurn Nyl. and H. madagascarea concluded that these taxa belong to a same species, confirming the extension of Gymnoderma Nyl. to Africa. The overlooked genus Baeoderma Vain. is regarded as a synonym of Gymnoderma, and its type species Baeoderma madagascareum (Nyl.) Vain. is referred to G. coccocarpum.Peer reviewe

Taxonomy of Cladonia angustiloba and related species

The lichen species Cladonia angustiloba is characterized by a well-developed primary thallus and narrow squamules which show deep incisions, and the presence of usnic and fumarprotocetraric acids. Morphologically it is similar to C. foliacea and C. convoluta, from which it can be distiguished by the squamule size and morphology. Since similar characters were used to distinguish C. foliacea from C. convoluta which do not represent different lineages, it is necessary to examine the taxonomic status of C. angustiloba by means of DNA sequences. In this study, the species delimitation within the C. foliacea complex was studied by sequencing three loci, ITS rDNA, cox1 and RPB2. The data were analyzed by means of phylogenetic and species delimitation methods (GMYC, PTP, ABGD and BPP). Our results show that none of the three species is monophyletic. Most of the species delimitation methods did not support the current species as evolutionary lineages. Only some of the BPP analyses supported C. angustiloba as a species distinct from C. foliacea and C. convoluta. However, the hypothesis that considers the C. foliacea complex as constituted by a unique species obtained the best Bayes Factor value. Therefore, C. angustiloba and C. convoluta are synonymized with C. foliacea. A new, thoroughly checked synonymy with typifications of the whole C. foliacea complex is presented. An updated survey of the world distribution data is compiled.Peer reviewe

A spectral analysis of common boreal ground lichen species

Lichens dominate a significant part of the Earth's land surface, and are valuable bioindicators of various environmental changes. In the northern hemisphere, the largest lichen biomass is in the woodlands and heathlands of the boreal zone and in tundra. Despite the global coverage of lichens, there has been only limited research on their spectral properties in the context of remote sensing of the environment. In this paper, we report spectral properties of 12 common boreal lichen species. Measurements of reflectance spectra were made in laboratory conditions with a standard spectrometer (350-2500 nm) and a novel mobile hyperspectral camera (400-1000 nm) which was used in a multiangular setting. Our results show that interspecific differences in reflectance spectra were the most pronounced in the ultraviolet and visible spectral range, and that dry samples always had higher reflectance than fresh (moist) samples in the shortwave infrared region. All study species had higher reflectance in the backward scattering direction compared to nadir or forward scattering directions. Our results also reveal, for the first time, that there is large intraspecific variation in reflectance of lichen species. This emphasizes the importance of measuring several replicates of each species when analyzing lichen spectra. In addition, we used the data in a spectral clustering analysis to study the spectral similarity between samples and species, and how these similarities could be linked to different physical traits or phylogenetic closeness of the species. Overall, our results suggest that spectra of some lichen species with large ground coverage can be used for species identification from high spatial resolution remote sensing imagery. On the other hand, for lichen species growing as small assemblages, mobile hyperspectral cameras may offer a solution for in-situ species identification. The spectral library collected in this study is available in the SPECCHIO Spectral Information System.Peer reviewe

"Cladonia verticillata" ("Cladoniaceae", Ascomycota), nueva cita para la Península Ibérica

The identity of a putative collection of Cladonia verticillata is assessed by means of ITS rDNA region. The phylogenetic analyses confirmedthat this specimen belongs to C. verticillata, and this species is reported as new to Iberian Peninsula.La identidad de una supuesta muestra de Cladonia verticillata es evaluada por medio de la región ITS rDNA. Los análisis filogenéticos revelaronque esta muestra pertenece a C. verticillata y, por tanto, esta especie es una nueva cita para la Península Ibérica