''Endococcus thelommatis'' is a species of lichenicolous (

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.fungus A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...

in the family Lichenotheliaceae. It was formally described as a new species in 2011 by lichenologists Jana Kocourková and Kerry Knudsen. The fungus grows on the lichen ''

Thelomma santessonii ''Thelomma santessonii'', the tan nipple lichen, is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Caliciaceae. Found in northern North America, it was formally described as a new species in 1976 by lichenologist Leif Ti ...

'', a common saxicolous (rock-dwelling),

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 ...

that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the coast and islands of

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

and Mexico's

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

. ''Endococcus thelommatis'' is the first lichenicolous fungus to have been reported from this lichen.

References

Dothideomycetes Lichenicolous fungi Fungi described in 2011 Fungi of North America Fungus species {{Dothideomycetes-stub