Dirina Astridae
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Dirina Astridae
''Dirina astridae'' is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Roccellaceae. Found in Mauritius, it was formally described as a new species in 2013 by Anders Tehler. The type specimen was collected by the author from the peak of Signal Mountain in Port Louis. The species epithet ''astridae'' refers to Tehler's daughter Astrid, "who led the way to this species on a joint field trip to Mauritius". ''Dirina astridae'' is endemic to the Mascarene Islands, where it grows on acidic or volcanic rock. It contains the lichen products erythrin and lecanoric acid, as well as a few unidentified substances. The expected results for chemical spot tests are thallus Thallus (plural: thalli), from Latinized Greek (), meaning "a green shoot" or "twig", is the vegetative tissue of some organisms in diverse groups such as algae, fungi, some liverworts, lichens, and the Myxogastria. Many of these organisms wer ... surface C+ (red), medulla C–, and apot ...
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Saxicolous Lichen
A saxicolous lichen is a lichen that grows on rock. The prefix "sax" from the Latin means "rock" or "stone". Characteristics Saxicolous lichens exhibit very slow growth rates. They may develop on rock substrates for long periods of time, given the absence of external disturbances. The importance of the mineral composition of the rock substrate, as well as the elemental geochemistry Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the e ... is also important to the distribution of saxicolous lichens, but the relationship between the substrate influence on lichens, either chemical or textural, is still obscure. Communities of saxicolous lichens are often species-rich in terms of number. References Lichenology {{lichen-stub ...
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Volcanic Rock
Volcanic rock (often shortened to volcanics in scientific contexts) is a rock formed from lava erupted from a volcano. In other words, it differs from other igneous rock by being of volcanic origin. Like all rock types, the concept of volcanic rock is artificial, and in nature volcanic rocks grade into hypabyssal and metamorphic rocks and constitute an important element of some sediments and sedimentary rocks. For these reasons, in geology, volcanics and shallow hypabyssal rocks are not always treated as distinct. In the context of Precambrian shield geology, the term "volcanic" is often applied to what are strictly metavolcanic rocks. Volcanic rocks and sediment that form from magma erupted into the air are called "volcaniclastics," and these are technically sedimentary rocks. Volcanic rocks are among the most common rock types on Earth's surface, particularly in the oceans. On land, they are very common at plate boundaries and in flood basalt provinces. It has been estimated t ...
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Lichen Species
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Introduction to Lichens – An Alliance between Kingdoms
. University of California Museum of Paleontology.
Lichens have properties different from those of their component organisms. They come in many colors, sizes, and forms and are sometimes plant-like, but are not s. They may have tiny, leafless branches (); flat leaf-like structures (

Dirina
''Dirina'' is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Roccellaceae. All ''Dirina'' species are crustose lichens with a whitish to greyish brown thallus, and live either on rock or on bark–some species can live on both. The partner is a member of the green algal genus '' Trentepohlia''. Most species occur in the Northern Hemisphere, and are generally restricted to coastal habitats, where they may be locally quite common. Erythrin and lecanoric acid are lichen products that usually occur in ''Dirina'' species, along with several other unidentified substances. The genus was circumscribed in 1825 by Elias Magnus Fries. Swedish lichenologist Anders Tehler published a monograph about the genus in 1983. Thirty years later, he and his colleagues revisited ''Dirina'', combining evidence from molecular phylogenetic analysis with morphological and chemical analysis. They accepted 24 species in ''Dirina'', 9 of which were described as new to science. Species * '' Dirina ango ...
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Medulla (lichenology)
The medulla is a horizontal layer within a lichen thallus. It is a loosely arranged layer of interlaced hyphae below the upper cortex and photobiont A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Galloway, D.J. (1992). Flora of Australia - ''Lichen Glossary'' The medulla generally has a cottony appearance. It is the widest layer of a heteromerous lichen thallus.


References

Fungal morphology and anatomy Lichenology {{lichen-stub ...
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Thallus
Thallus (plural: thalli), from Latinized Greek (), meaning "a green shoot" or "twig", is the vegetative tissue of some organisms in diverse groups such as algae, fungi, some liverworts, lichens, and the Myxogastria. Many of these organisms were previously known as the thallophytes, a polyphyletic group of distantly related organisms. An organism or structure resembling a thallus is called thalloid, thallodal, thalliform, thalline, or thallose. A thallus usually names the entire body of a multicellular non-moving organism in which there is no organization of the tissues into organs. Even though thalli do not have organized and distinct parts (leaves, roots, and stems) as do the vascular plants, they may have analogous structures that resemble their vascular "equivalents". The analogous structures have similar function or macroscopic structure, but different microscopic structure; for example, no thallus has vascular tissue. In exceptional cases such as the Lemnoideae, where ...
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Spot Test (lichen)
A spot test in lichenology is a spot analysis used to help identify lichens. It is performed by placing a drop of a chemical on different parts of the lichen and noting the colour change (or lack thereof) associated with application of the chemical. The tests are routinely encountered in dichotomous keys for lichen species, and they take advantage of the wide array of lichen products produced by lichens and their uniqueness among taxa. As such, spot tests reveal the presence or absence of chemicals in various parts of a lichen. They were first proposed by the botanist William Nylander in 1866. Three common spot tests use either 10% aqueous KOH solution (K test), saturated aqueous solution of bleaching powder or calcium hypochlorite (C test), or 5% alcoholic ''p''-phenylenediamine solution (P test). The colour changes occur due to presence of particular secondary metabolites in the lichen. There are several other less frequently used spot tests of more limited use that are employed ...
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Lecanoric Acid
Lecanoric acid is a chemical produced by several species of lichen.ubChem - Lecanoric acid"> Lecanoric acid is classified as a polyphenol and a didepside and it functions as an antioxidant. The acid is named after the lichen ''Lecanora''. The acid has also been isolated from ''Usnea subvacata'', ''Parmotrema stuppuem'', ''Parmotrema tinctorum,'' '' Parmotrema grayana,'' Xanthoparmelia arida and Xanthoparmelia lecanorica. A related compound, 5-chlorolecanoric acid, is found in some species of ''Punctelia ''Punctelia'' is a genus of foliose lichens belonging to the large family Parmeliaceae. The genus, which contains about 50 species, was segregated from genus ''Parmelia'' in 1982. Characteristics that define ''Punctelia'' include the presence of ...''. References {{Reflist Polyphenols Benzoic acids Benzoate esters Lichen products ...
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Lichen Product
Lichen products, also known as lichen substances, are organic compounds produced by a lichen. Specifically, they are secondary metabolites. Lichen products are represented in several different chemical classes, including terpenoids, orcinol derivatives, chromones, xanthones, depsides, and depsidones. Over 800 lichen products of known chemical structure have been reported in the scientific literature, and most of these compound are exclusively found in lichens. Examples of lichen products include usnic acid (a dibenzofuran), atranorin (a depside), lichexanthone (a xanthone), salazinic acid (a depsidone), and isolichenan, an α-glucan. Many lichen products have biological activity, and research into these effects is ongoing. Lichen products accumulate on the outer walls of the fungal hyphae, and are quite stable. Crystal deposits can be visualised using scanning electron microscopy. For this reason, even very old herbarium specimens can be analysed. The amount of lichen products i ...
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Acidic Rock
Acidic rock or acid rock refers to the chemical composition of igneous rocks that has 63% wt% SiO2 content. Rocks described as acidic usually contain more than 20% of free quartz. Typical acidic rocks are granite or rhyolite. Term is used in chemical classification of igneous rock based on the content of silica (SiO2). Due to the fact that chemical analyzes are not always available, especially during the fieldwork, classification based on the mineral (modal) composition is more often used (dividing the igneous rocks into felsic/leucocratic, mafic/melanocratic and ultramafic Ultramafic rocks (also referred to as ultrabasic rocks, although the terms are not wholly equivalent) are igneous and meta-igneous rocks with a very low silica content (less than 45%), generally >18% MgO, high FeO, low potassium, and are composed ...). The term "silicic", widely used in North America, has wider meaning, however, is often used as broadly synonymous with "acidic". Terms describing compositi ...
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Crustose Lichen
Crustose lichens are lichens that form a crust which strongly adheres to the Substrate (biology), substrate (soil, rock, tree bark, etc.), making separation from the substrate impossible without destruction. The basic structure of crustose lichens consists of a cortex (botany), cortex layer, an algal layer, and a medulla. The upper cortex layer is differentiated and is usually pigmented. The algal layer lies beneath the cortex. The medulla fastens the lichen to the substrate and is made up of Fungus, fungal hyphae. The surface of crustose lichens is characterized by branching cracks that periodically close in response to climatic variations such as alternate wetting and drying regimes. Subtypes * Powdery – considered as the simplest subtype due to the absence of an organized thallus. :The thallus appears powdery. :E.g. Genera ''Lepraria'', ''Vezdaea'' * Endolithic – grows inside the rock, usually in interstitial spaces between mineral grains. The :upper cortex is usually d ...
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