Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History)

158 BRIAN JOHN COPPINS
26. Micarea misella (Nyl.) Hedl.
(Fig. 23A; Map 13)
in Bih. K. svenska VetenskAkad. Handl. Ill, 18 (3): 78, 88 (1892). - Lecidea anomala f. misella Nyl.,
202 (1861) .- Lecidea misella (Nyl.) Nyl. in Not. Sdllsk. Fauna Fl.fenn. Fork. 8: 177 (1866).
Lich. Scand. :
Type: Finland, Nylandia, Helsingfors [Helsinki], 1858, W. Nylander (H-\ectotypel).
Lecidea resinae* [subsp.] L. globularis Nyl. , Lich. Scand. : 213 (1861). - Lecidea globularis (Nyl.) Lamy in
Bull. Soc. bot. Fr. 25: 435 (1878). - Micarea globularis (Nyl.) Hedl. in Bih. K. svenska VetenskAkad.
Handl. Ill, 18 (3): 78, 88 (1892). Type: Sweden, 'Arthonia turgida var. y globifera Svecia 112°' (H-ACH
52-holotype!).
Lecidea melanochroza Leighton ex Crombie in 7. Bot., Lond. 9: 178 (1871). Type: Scotland, Perthshire,
near Loch Tummel, /. M. Crombie (BM - lectotype!; isolectotypes: BM ex K!, and distributed in
Crombie Lich. Brit. Exs. 174 (BM!) [note: this example includes M. prasina and those in E and M
contain M. prasina only]).
Lecidea misella f. brasiliana Vainio in Acta Soc. Fauna Fl. fenn 7 (2): 57 (1890). Type: Brazil, Minas
Geraes, Carassa, 1400 m, on lignum, Vainio, Lich. Brasil. Exs. 1420 (BM ex K - lectotype!; M -
isolectotype!).
Bilimbia melaena f. decrustata Vainio in Acta Soc. Fauna Fl. fenn. 53 (1): 255 (1922). Type: Finland,
Tavastia australis, HoUola, 1871, Vainio (TUR-VAINIO 21480- lectotype!).
Lecidea asserculorum sensu Th. Fr., Lich. Scand. 2: 473 (1874), non Ach (1810). See note by Hedlund
(1892: 89).
Thallus effuse, often wide-spreading, usually lignicolous and endoxylic, sometimes develop-
ing on the surface of the substratum as convex to irregularly subglobose, greenish white to
greenish grey, ± contiguous granular-areolae, c. 60-120(-150) /w-m diam. Areolae in section,
without a well defined cortex or hyaline amorphous covering layer, but outer 5-12 /xm is often
tinged with olivaceous-brown pigment (K+ violet); pigment confined to gel-matrix and not
adhering to hyphal walls. Phycobiont micareoid, cells 4—7 /xm diam.
Apothecia numerous, few or absent, scattered to crowded and confluent, immarginate,
convex-hemispherical to subglobose, sometimes shortly stipitate, sometimes tuberculate, black,
rarely pallid or grey-brown (shade forms), matt. c. 0-1-0-3 mm diam. Hymenium 25-36 /am tall;
upper part dull greenish brown or olivaceous, K-l- violet, with pigment confined to the
gel-matrix; remaining (lower) part hyaline or dilute sordid greenish. Asci clavate, 25-35x7-10
^tm. Spores ellipsoid, ovoid, or oblong-ovoid, not curved, sometimes with 1-3 guttules, simple
but a few (very rarely many) sometimes 1-septate, (6-5-)7-9-5x2-0-3(-3-7) jxm. Paraphyses
scanty, sparingly branched 0-5-0-8 /xm wide; apical parts often more richly branched, sometimes
wider (to 1-5 /xm), but without closely adhering pigment. Hypothecium c. 45-70 /xm tall,
hyaline, or dilute olivaceous (rarely dark olivaceous: 'f. brasiliana') and then K-f- violet; hyphae
interwoven but becoming vertically orientated towards the hymenium, c. 0-7-1 /xm wide;
ascogenous hyphae with swollen cells, c. 2-4 /xm wide. Excipulum poorly developed but often
evident as a dark brownish (K+ violet) zone bordering the reflexed edges of the hymenium;
hyphae radiating, branched and anastomosing, very narrow, c. 0-5-0-8 /xm wide.
Pycnidia usually present black, walls green-brown, K-l- violet; of two types: (a) sometimes
sessile, more usually borne single in the top of a black, unbranched stalk (pycnidiophore),
70-320 /xm tall (including stalk) and 50-100 /xm wide; stalk part composed of interwoven
hyphae, c. 1-1 -5 /xm wide, embedded in a gel-matrix containing a dull brown or olivaceous, K-lviolet
pigment; conidia (mesoconidia) shortly cylindrical, sometimes faintly biguttulate, 3-5-
5xl-l-5(-l-7) /xm; (b) ± immersed in the substratum (lignum) or areolae, c. 40 /xm diam; wall
with green-brown, K-l- violet pigment in upper part, but becoming ± hyaline below; conidia
(microconidia) narrowly cylindrical, 3-8-6x0-6--0-8 /xm. Pycnidia with stalks (a) are mostly
confined to forms with an endoxylic thallus.
Chemistry: Sections of thallus (when superficial) K- , C-l- red, PD- ; sections of apothecia C-fviolet
(olivaceous pigment), but only rarely C-l- red; t.l.c: gyrophoric acid detected in varying
amounts, sometimes absent.
Observations: Typical forms of M. misella with an endoxylic thallus, numerous apothecia, and
stalked pycnidia are easy to recognize. However, when it has a well developed superficial thallus