''Piccolia nannaria'' 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 class

Lecanoromycetes Lecanoromycetes is the largest class of lichenized fungi. It belongs to the subphylum Pezizomycotina in the phylum Ascomycota. The asci (spore-bearing cells) of the Lecanoromycetes most often release spores by rostrate dehiscence. Genera of unc ...

. It is widespread but uncommon in the

coastal plain A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Coa ...

of southeastern North America. Initially thought to be corticolous (bark-dwelling), later collection of the lichen suggest that it may be

lichenicolous A lichenicolous fungus is a parasitic fungus that only lives on lichen as the host. A lichenicolous fungus is not the same as the fungus that is the component of the lichen, which is known as a lichenized fungus. They are most commonly specific to ...

(lichen-dwelling).

Taxonomy

The species was first formally described as a new species in 1872 by American lichenologist

Edward Tuckerman Edward Tuckerman (December 7, 1817 in Boston, Massachusetts – March 15, 1886) was an American botanist and professor who made significant contributions to the study of lichens and other alpine plants. He was a founding member of the Natura ...

, as ''Heterothecium nannarium''. 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 by Charles Wright in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

in 1850. Alexander Zahlbruckner proposed a transfer to the genus '' Biatorella'' in 1927. James Lendemer and Sean Beeching transferred the

taxon In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

to the genus ''

Piccolia ''Piccolia'' is a small genus of crustose lichens in the class Lecanoromycetes. First circumscription (taxonomy), circumscribed by Italian lichenologist Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo in 1864, it contains ten species. Due to a lack of molecular d ...

'' in 2007.

Description

''Piccolia nannaria'' is characterized by its and yellow exterior or

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 ...

. Its , which range in colour from a subtle green to an orange-yellow, are quite tiny, and its asci are , housing numerous minuscule spherical, colourless .

Distribution and ecology

The lichen is widespread but uncommon in the coastal plain of southeastern North America, south to

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. Its range was later extended after it was recorded as far north as

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. In the

Delmarva Peninsula The Delmarva Peninsula, or simply Delmarva, is a large peninsula and proposed state on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by the vast majority of the state of Delaware and parts of the Eastern Shore regions of Maryland and Virginia ...

, several populations were discovered where the lichen had numerous (not previously reported in this species), but lacked . Although the lichen was previously assumed to be corticolous (bark-dwelling), further collections and additional investigation of previously collected specimens suggests that the species may be

(lichen-dwelling), as it appears to be consistently associated and growing over the crustose lichen '' Pyrrhospora varians'', sometimes to the point almost almost completely obscuring the thallus of its putative

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County People *Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman * Michel Host ...

. Additional research is needed to firmly establish the ecological preferences of this lichen.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q21306984 Lecanoromycetes Lichen species Lichens described in 1872 Taxa named by Edward Tuckerman