''Apatoplaca'' is a fungal

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

in the family

Teloschistaceae The Teloschistaceae are a large family of mostly lichen-forming fungi belonging to the class Lecanoromycetes in the division Ascomycota. The family, estimated to contain over 1800 species, was extensively revised in 2013, including the creation o ...

. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

, containing a single species, the rare

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 lichen ...

''Apatoplaca oblongula'', found in the United States.

Taxonomy

''Apatoplaca oblongula'' was first formally described as new to science in 1952 by Adolf Hugo Magnusson as ''Lecidea oblongula''. In 1980, Josef Poelt and

Josef Hafellner Josef Hafellner (1951– ) is an Austrian mycologist and lichenologist. He was awarded the Acharius Medal in 2016 for his lifetime contributions to lichenology. Before his retirement, he was a professor at the Karl-Franzens-Universität in ...

described ''Apatoplaca'' based on this species, suggesting that the lack of

septa The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly 4 million people in five coun ...

in the

spores In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plants, algae, f ...

was a difference great enough to warrant a new genus. Clifford Wetmore noted in a mid-1990s publication that he had found specimens that had spores with septa, so the main character of the new genus was invalidated and he proposed that it be considered

synonymous A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

with ''

Caloplaca ''Caloplaca'' is a lichen genus comprising a number of distinct species. Members of the genus are commonly called firedot lichen, jewel lichen.Field Guide to California Lichens, Stephen Sharnoff, Yale University Press, 2014, gold lichens, "ora ...

''. However, recent summaries of fungal and lichen classification have accepted the genus, and ''Apatoplaca'' is accepted by

Species Fungorum ''Index Fungorum'' is an international project to index all formal names (scientific names) in the fungus kingdom. the project is based at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, one of three partners along with Landcare Research and the Institute of Mi ...

Description

''Apatoplaca oblongula'' has a white, crust-like

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 ...

that is embedded within the upper surface of its rock substrate. Although it lacks a

cortex Cortex or cortical may refer to: Biology * Cortex (anatomy), the outermost layer of an organ ** Cerebral cortex, the outer layer of the vertebrate cerebrum, part of which is the ''forebrain'' *** Motor cortex, the regions of the cerebral cortex i ...

and a prothallus,

apothecia An ascocarp, or ascoma (), is the fruiting body ( sporocarp) of an ascomycete phylum fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hyphae and millions of embedded asci, each of which typically contains four to eight ascospores. Ascocarps are mo ...

are numerous. They are black and flat, measuring in diameter. Its

ascospore An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera or s ...

s measure 15.5–21 by 5.5–8.5 μm, and they have either a simple septum or no septa at all.

Habitat and distribution

A rare species, ''Apatoplaca oblongula'' has been recorded from

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

and

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

, where it grows on

calcareous Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of scientific disciplines. In zoology ''Calcareous'' is used as an adje ...

rocks.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q107289071, from2=Q107486285 Teloschistales Lichen genera Teloschistales genera Taxa described in 1980 Taxa named by Josef Hafellner Fungi without expected TNC conservation status Taxa named by Josef Poelt