Key to Genera of Shrubby and Leafy Lichens
| 1 |
Lichen shrubby, not appressed to the substrate, branches usually radially symmetrical, often attached by a holdfast (fruticose) |
2 |
| |
Lichen leaf-like, usually appressed to the substrate, with distinct upper and lower surfaces, usually attached by rhizines or a tomentum, occasionally with a holdfast (foliose) |
12 |
Shrubby or Fruticose Lichens
| 2(1) |
Thallus hollow |
3 |
| |
Thallus solid |
5
|
| 3(2) |
Thallus regularly perforate to the central cavity, often in a lattice-like pattern |
Cladia |
| |
Thallus not perforate or perforate only in axils of branches or irregularly fissured |
6
|
| 4(3) |
Apothecium black, disc of loosely packed hyphae and spores |
Bunadophoron |
| |
Apothecium buff or red |
5
|
| 5(4) |
Apothecial disc buff-coloured with a well defined thalline margin |
Ramalina |
| |
Apothecial disc red to brown or black, without an apparent margin |
Cladonia
|
| 6(2) |
Thallus coloured gold to orange |
Teloschistes |
| |
Thallus coloured grey, yellow-green or red |
7
|
| 7(6) |
Thallus cylindrical with a central cartilaginous cord |
Usnea |
| |
Thallus cylindrical or flattened, without a central cord |
8
|
| 8(7) |
Apothecia pink |
Dibaes |
| |
Apothecia buff to brown or black |
9
|
| 9(8) |
Thallus white or pale grey |
10 |
| |
Thallus brown to yellow-green |
12
|
| 10(9) |
Thallus with long rhizoidal extensions into the soil |
Siphula |
| |
Thallus attached by a holdfast, without rhizoids |
11
|
| 11(10) |
Branches with numerous minute leafy appendages on the branches |
Stereocaulon |
| |
Branches without leafy appendages |
Bunadophoron
|
| 11(9) |
Apothecial disc black, on soil |
Ramalea |
| |
Apothecial disc buff, on bark, wood or rock |
Ramalina
|
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Leafy or Foliose Lichens
| 12(1) |
The lower surface with discrete rhizines that may be simple or branched but not felted, without vein-like markings, woolly tomentum or pores. |
13
|
| |
Lower surface naked or with a felted or carpet-like tomentum (with or without rhizines), or with vein-like markings (from which rhizines may develop) or with pores that may be either cup-like or filled with hyphal masses. |
43
|
Foliose lichens always and only with discrete rhizines on the lower surface
| 13(12) |
Cilia growing from the margin of the lobes at least sparsely |
14 |
| |
Cilia not present on the margins of the lobes |
27
|
| 14(13) |
Cilia broadening into a bulb at the base |
15 |
| |
Cilia without a basal bulb, but may be thickened |
16
|
| 15(14) |
Lobes grey |
Bulbothrix |
| |
Lobes green |
Relicina
|
| 16(14) |
Upper cortex brown |
Phaeophyscia |
| |
Upper cortex grey or green |
17
|
| 17(16) |
Rhizines dichotomously branched |
18 |
| |
Rhizines simple or bushy at the tips |
19
|
| 18(17) |
Upper cortex of longitudinal hyphae, often without a lower cortex, upper surface sometimes ciliate, ascospores brown, two-celled |
Heterodermia |
|
Upper cortex of vertical hyphae, lower cortex always present, upper surface never ciliate, ascospores hyaline, one celled |
Hypotrachyna
|
| 19(17) |
Ascospores 2-celled, brown, lobes usually <2mm broad |
20 |
| |
Ascospores 1 celled, lobes usually >2mm broad |
21
|
| 20(19) |
Thallus grey, K+ yellow |
Physcia |
| |
Thallus brown, K- |
Phaeophysica
|
| 21(19) |
Lobes broadly rotund, with a broad zone bare of rhizines near the tips |
22 |
| |
Lobes truncate at the tips, with rhizines to the margins |
25
|
| 22(21) |
Upper surface with neither distinctive white spotting not a pattern of reticulate cracks on young lobes |
23 |
|
Upper surface with either a pattern of distinctive white spots or reticulate cracks on young lobes |
24
|
| 23(22) |
Cilia less than 5mm long and restricted to lobe axils |
Parmelinella |
| |
Cilia more than 5mm long, or less than 5mm long but not restricted to axils |
Parmotrema
|
| 24(22) |
Upper surface reticulately cracked |
Rimelia |
| |
Upper surface with a pattern of coarse white markings and cracks |
Canomaculina
|
| 25(21) |
Cilia evenly spread on lobe margins |
Parmelinopsis |
| |
Cilia mostly in axils |
26
|
| 26(25) |
Medulla K+ yellow turning red |
Parmelinella |
| |
Medulla K- |
Parmelina
|
| 27(13) |
Upper surface of thallus uniformly bright yellow |
Candelaria |
| |
Upper surface of thallus white, grey, brown or green |
28
|
| 28(27) |
Apothecia on lower surface of lobes |
Nephroma |
| |
Apothecia on upper surface of lobes |
29
|
| 29(28) |
Upper surface brown |
30 |
| |
Upper surface white, grey or green |
32
|
| 30(29) |
Ascospores simple, hyaline |
Xanthoparmelia |
| |
Ascospores two-celled, brown |
31
|
| 31(30) |
Lobes 1-2mm wide |
Phaeophyscia |
| |
Lobes < 0.5mm wide |
Hyperphyscia
|
| 32(29) |
Thallus yellow-green and on rocks or soil |
Xanthoparmelia |
| |
Thallus white or grey, or, if yellow green, not on rocks or soil |
33
|
| 33(32) |
Upper cortex pseudocyphellate |
34 |
| |
Upper surface without pseudocyphellae |
35
|
| 34(33) |
Lower surface black |
Parmelia |
| |
Lower surface white or tan |
Punctelia
|
| 35(33) |
Rhizines dichotomously branched, prominent |
36 |
| |
Rhizines simple or bushy at the tip |
37
|
| 36(35) |
Spores simple, lobes always corticate below |
Hypotrachyna |
| |
Spores two-celled, often ecorticate below |
Heterodermia
|
| 37(35) |
Rhizines absent from a marginal zone |
38 |
| |
Rhizines to lobe tips |
39
|
| 38(37) |
Rhizines absent from a broad band on lobe tips |
Parmotrema |
| |
Rhizines absent from a narrow (1mm wide) marginal zone |
Canoparmelia
|
| 39(37) |
Spores 2-celled, brown |
40 |
| |
Spores simple, hyaline |
41
|
| 40(39) |
Apothecia with a thalline margin when mature |
Physcia |
| |
Apothecia with a proper margin when mature |
Pyxine
|
| 41(39) |
Upper surface green |
Flavoparmelia |
| |
Upper surface grey |
42
|
| 42(41) |
Lobes truncate, only on rock or soil |
Xanthoparmelia |
| |
Lobes rotund, on wood, bark or rock |
Canoparmelia
|
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Foliose lichens with lower surfaces having features other than discrete rhizines.
| 43(12) |
Lower surface with cup-like pores or with pores showing white or yellow hyphae, or veins that give rise to rhizines |
44 |
| |
Lower surface without pores or veins |
47
|
| 44(43) |
Veins on lower surface, apothecia on terminal finger-like projections |
Peltigera |
| |
Lower surface not veined, apothecia disc-like |
45
|
| 45(44) |
Pores filled with white or yellow hyphae |
Pseudocyphellaria |
| |
Pores cup-like in the lower surface |
46
|
| 46(45) |
Pores in the indumentum, not the lower cortex |
Heterodea |
| |
Pores in the lower cortex |
Sticta
|
| 47(44) |
Apothecia on the lower side of the lobe tips |
Nephroma |
| |
Apothecia on the upper side of the lobes |
48
|
| 48(47) |
Thallus with a few well-developed rhizines restricted to margins or constrictions of the thallus |
49 |
| |
Thallus devoid of rhizines, but may have a tomentum |
50
|
| 49(48) |
Rhizines in constrictions between tomentose pads |
Pannoparmelia |
| |
Rhizines on margins of lobes with a decorticate lower surface |
Heterodermia
|
| 50(49) |
Thallus with an indumentum on the lower surface |
51 |
| |
Thallus naked below |
57
|
| 51(50) |
Thallus > 10 cm long, very loosely adnate to the substratum |
Lobaria |
| |
Thallus < 10 cm diameter, adnate to substratum |
52
|
| 52(51) |
Upper cortex one cell thick, thallus gelatinous when wet, paper-like when dry |
Leptogium |
| |
Upper cortex many cells thick, thallus not gelatinous when wet, cartilaginous when dry |
53
|
| 53(52) |
Ascospores thick-walled |
Physma |
| |
Ascospores thin walled |
54
|
| 54(53) |
Apothecia with a thalline exciple |
Pannaria |
| |
Apothecia without a thalline exciple |
55
|
| 55(54) |
Lobes with very fine longitudinal scratch-like lines |
Coccocarpia |
| |
Lobes without fine longitudinal scratch-like lines |
56
|
| 56(55) |
Upper surface cobwebby |
Leioderma |
| |
Upper surface smooth |
Fuscoderma
|
| 57(50) |
Photobiont green |
58 |
| |
Photobiont cyanobacterial |
63
|
| 58(57) |
Lobes fat and hollow or sparsely filled by hyphae |
59 |
| |
Lobes flattened, solid |
60
|
| 59(58) |
Holes in outer wall opening to a central cavity |
Mennegazzia |
| |
No holes in outer wall |
Hypogymnia
|
| 60(58) |
Thallus free from substratum |
Xanthoparmelia |
| |
Thallus attached to substratum |
61
|
| 61(60) |
Thallus olive or brown |
Hyperphyscia |
| |
Thallus green to grey |
62
|
| 62(61) |
Thallus green |
Xanthoparmelia |
| |
Thallus grey |
Dirinaria
|
| 63(57) |
Upper surface of thallus with a long indumentum |
Dictyonema |
| |
Upper surface smooth or rough, but not hairy |
64
|
| 64(63) |
Thallus gelatinous when wet |
65 |
| |
Thallus not gelatinous when wet |
Pannaria
|
| 65(64) |
Spores with a thick wall |
Physma |
| |
Spores thin walled |
66
|
| 66(65) |
Cortex of closely packed angular cells |
Leptogium |
| |
True cortex absent, outer layer of swollen hyphae |
Collema
|
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