''Niebla flagelliforma'' is a

fruticose lichen A fruticose lichen is a form of lichen fungi that is characterized by a coral-like shrubby or bushy growth structure. It is formed from a symbiotic relationship of a photobiont such as green algae or less commonly cyanobacteria and one, two or mor ...

that grows on rocks along the foggy Pacific Coast of

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 ...

mostly in the Northern Vizcaíno Desert.Spjut, R. W. 1996. ''Niebla'' and ''Vermilacinia'' (Ramalinaceae) from California and Baja California. Sida Bot. Misc. 14 The epithet, ''flagelliforma'' is in reference to the individual branches of the thallus shaped like a

flagellum A flagellum (; ) is a hairlike appendage that protrudes from certain plant and animal sperm cells, and from a wide range of microorganisms to provide motility. Many protists with flagella are termed as flagellates. A microorganism may have f ...

Distinguishing features

''Niebla flagelliforma'' is easily recognized by a

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 ...

—up to 6 cm high and 3 cm across—divided from a holdfast into narrow erect branches that terminate—after branching one or more times—in flagelliform branchlets. The cortex of the thallus, which covers a partially hollow

medulla Medulla or Medullary may refer to: Science * Medulla oblongata, a part of the brain stem * Renal medulla, a part of the kidney * Adrenal medulla, a part of the adrenal gland * Medulla of ovary, a stroma in the center of the ovary * Medulla of th ...

, has conspicuous and closely reticulate ridges, often cracking along the transverse ridges, and becomes thinner towards apex, 75–25 μm thick. This thinning of the cortex and the development of a subfistulose medulla probably relates to the coiling of the branches. Black dot-like pycnidia are abundant on the flagelliform branchlets, each pycnidium is surrounded by a cortical margin similar to the thalline margin of an

apothecium 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 ...

. The key lichen substance is divaricatic acid (with triterpenes and usnic acid). ''Niebla flagelliforma'' is frequent in wind-sheltered areas inland from the coast on the northern peninsula of Baja California, generally south of Campo Nuevo, but also occurs around Bahía de San Quintín and nearby Isla San Martín.

Taxonomic history

''Niebla flagelliforma'' was recognized as distinct from ''

Niebla homalea ''Niebla homalea'' is a species of fruticose lichen that grows on rocks in foggy areas along the Pacific Coast of North America, from Mendocino County, California south to Bahía de San Quintín on the main peninsula of Baja California, with an ...

'', 1 May 1985, following a sample of ''N. homalea'' collected 29 April 1985 on Punta Banda in Baja California; ''N. flagelliforma'' was collected by Richard Spjut and Richard Marin (S & M 9058A) near Rosarito along Baja Mexico Highway 1, 33 km south of junction with road to Bahía de los Angeles, on rocks of north-facing slopes in the understory of dense brush. A sample of 110 grams was submitted to the National Cancer Institute, Natural Products Branch for their natural product screening program in search of new compounds to treat HIV and cancer; the sample was accessioned as WBA-122, and identified as “''Niebla'' sp. (undscribed) rock ‘ceruchis’ type.” and cited in Spjut's 1996 revision of the genus under ''N. flagelliforma''. The species was described in 1996. It has been since included under an extremely broad interpretation of ''

'';Bowler, P. and J. Marsh. 2004. ''Niebla''. ‘Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert 2’: 368–380. however, this interpretation has been questioned due to inconsistencies in the taxonomic treatment.Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert: Book Review, Richard Spjut, web page, retrieved 22 Dec 2014, http://www.worldbotanical.com/lichen%20flora%20review.htm

References

External links

*World Botanical Associates, ''Niebla flagelliforma'', retrieved 22 Dec 2014, http://www.worldbotanical.com/niebla_flagelliforma.htm#flagelliforma {{Taxonbar, from=Q20720440 Lichen species Lichens of North America Ramalinaceae Taxa named by Richard Wayne Spjut Lichens described in 1996