''Pertusaria salazinica'' is a species of

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 ...

in the family

Pertusariaceae The Pertusariaceae are a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Pertusariales. Taxonomy The family was formally circumscribed by German lichenologist Gustav Wilhelm Körber in 1846. It contained the genera ''Pertusaria'' and '' Ochrolechi ...

. Found in Australia, it was described as a new species in 2017 by lichenologists Alan Archer and

John Alan Elix John Alan (Jack) Elix (born 1941) emeritus professor in chemistry at the Australian National University, is an organic chemist who has contributed in many fields: lichenology, lichen chemotaxonomy, plant physiology and biodiversity and natural p ...

. The

type specimen In biology, a type is a particular wiktionary:en:specimen, specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to a ...

was collected in

Tully Gorge National Park Tully Gorge is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,338 km northwest of Brisbane. The park forms part of the Wooroonooran Important Bird Area, identified as such by BirdLife International because it supports populations of a range o ...

(

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

) at an altitude of . Here, in a montane

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

, it was found growing on a rotting log. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

refers to the presence of

salazinic acid Salazinic acid is a depsidone with a lactone ring. It is found in some lichens, and is especially prevalent in ''Parmotrema'' and ''Bulbothrix'', where its presence or absence is often used to help classify species in those genera. History I ...

, a major

secondary compound Secondary metabolites, also called specialised metabolites, toxins, secondary products, or natural products, are organic compounds produced by any lifeform, e.g. bacteria, fungi, animals, or plants, which are not directly involved in the norma ...

in the lichen. It also contains

norstictic acid Norstictic acid is a depsidone produced as a secondary metabolites in lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.

as a major metabolite, and connorstictic acid as a minor metabolite. ''Pertusaria salazinica'' is only known from the type specimen.

References

salazinica Lichen species Lichens described in 2017 Lichens of Australia Taxa named by Alan W. Archer Taxa named by John Alan Elix {{Pertusariales-stub

See also

References