Loading profile. Please wait . . .

---

Federal Protection: No US federal protection

State Protection: No Georgia state protection

Global Rank: GNR

State Rank: SNR

Element Locations Tracked in Biotics: No

SWAP 2015 Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN): No

SWAP 2025 Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN): No

2025 SGCN Priority Tier: None

Element Occurrences (EOs) in Georgia: 0

Habitat Summary for element in Georgia: Mesic hardwood forests; swamp forests

---

Description

Pale green to white thallus with lirelliform apothecia; lirellae edged with prominent, scurfy white rims, sometimes closed, often open (especially near thallus edges) to reveal a pale gray pruinose disk; MICROSCOPY: tips of paraphyses bulbous, ornamented with minute bumps, spores colorless, muriform to submuriform, about 46–85 × 9–17 µm; CHEMISTRY: thallus K+ yellow turning red, PD+ orange (norstictic acid); FIELD ID: pale green to white (yellowish in age), powdery, white-rimmed lirellae prominent, often sparse, not stellate, K+ red thallus; FIELD ID not possible; dissection & chemical tests required

Similar Species

Other Acanthothecis have different combination of spores & chemistry; Fissurina cypressi is similar but often has lirellae in stellate groups

Related Rare Species

None

Habitat

Mesic hardwood forests, swamp forests; substrates: 70% Quercus bark, 16% Nyssa, 12% other hardwoods; 1 record from Vitis (grape vine) bark

Life History

Corticolous lichenized crust, photobiont an alga in genus Trentepohlia

Survey Recommendations

None

Range

Mostly Coastal Plain, with a couple of outliers in the Piedmont

Threats

Harvesting old-growth hardwood forests & swamps

Georgia Conservation Status

Uncommon

Conservation Management Recommendations

Conserve Coastal Plain hardwood bluff forests

References

Brodo, I. M. 2001. Lichens of North America. Yale University Press, New Haven, Conn.

Esslinger, T. L. 2021. A cumulative checklist for the lichen-forming, lichenicolous and allied fungi of the continental United States and Canada. Version 24. Opuscula Philolichenum 20: 100-394.

Lendemer, J. C. 2010. Revised keys to the Graphidaceae in southeastern North America. Created for the 2010 Tuckerman Workshop, Augusta, Georgia. The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, N.Y.

Lendemer, J. C. & R. C. Harris. 2014. Seven new species of Graphidaceae (Lichenized Ascomycetes) from the Coastal Plain of southeastern North America. Phytotaxa 189: 153-175.

Authors of Account

Sean Beeching & Malcolm Hodges

Date Compiled or Updated

26 February 2022