''Candelariella efflorescens'', commonly known as the powdery goldfleck lichen,
is a species of
lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.[Candelariaceae
''Candelariaceae'' is a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Candelariales. It contains seven genera and about 73 species. The family was circumscribed by Finnish lichenologist Rainar Hakulinen in 1954 to contain the type genus
In biolo ...]
. Found in North America, it was
formally described as a new species in 1978 by Richard C. Harris and William R. Buck. The
type specimen was collected by the second author from
Hog Island Point State Forest Campground (
Michigan, USA); here, at the edge of a swamp, it was found growing on ''
Populus balsamifera''. The lichen has a
temperate eastern North American distribution. Although it occurs most frequently
on bark (usually from
deciduous tree
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, afte ...
s), it has also occasionally been recorded growing
on wood. Before its description as a new species, it had most often been confused with ''
Candelariella xanthostigma
''Candelariella'' is a genus of bright yellow, ocher, or greenish yellow crustose or squamulose lichens in the family Candelariaceae. Members of the genus are commonly called eggyolk lichens, goldspeck lichens, or yolk lichens. The genus was cir ...
'', ''
Candelariella concolor'' var. ''effusa'', and ''
Lepraria candelaris'' when well developed.
References
efflorescens
Lichen species
Lichens described in 1978
Lichens of North America
Taxa named by Richard Clinton Harris
{{Ascomycota-stub