''Pseudephebe'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

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 ...

s in the family

Parmeliaceae The Parmeliaceae is a large and diverse family of Lecanoromycetes. With over 2700 species in 71 genera, it is the largest family of lichen-forming fungi. The most speciose genera in the family are the well-known groups: '' Xanthoparmelia'' ( 822 ...

. It contains three species that grow on rocks.

Taxonomy

''Pseudephebe'' was

circumscribed In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius. Not every polyg ...

by French lichenologist

Maurice Choisy Maurice Gustave Benoît Choisy (29 June 1897 – 19 June 1966) was a French mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to h ...

in 1930.

Molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

work published in 2016 showed that the genus is

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

, and within the alectorioid

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

of the family

. This clade includes the genera '' Alectoria'', ''

Bryocaulon ''Bryocaulon'' is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Parmeliaceae. The genus has a widespread distribution in north temperate regions, and contains three species. The genus was circumscription (taxonomy), circumscribed by Swedish lichenol ...

'', ''

Bryoria ''Bryoria'' is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Parmeliaceae. Many members of this genus are known as horsehair lichens. The genus has a widespread distribution, especially in boreal and cool temperate areas. Taxonomy ''Bryoria'' was c ...

'', and ''

Nodobryoria ''Nodobryoria'' is a genus of medium to large, reddish-brown lichens that are hair-like to shrubby in shape and grow on conifer trees. The genus contains three species, distributed in North America and Greenland, which were previously included ...

''. ''P. mariensis'' was added to the genus in 2019, transferred from the genus ''Bryoria''. Although Boluda and colleagues considered this to be

synonymous A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

with ''P. minuscula'', Fryday and colleagues "consider the distinct pseudocyphellae, detectable norstictic acid, thick cortex and the unique propagule system of the Falklands collections as sufficient to provisionally maintain it as a distinct species."

Description

''Pseudephebe'' lichens are small and

fruticose 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 ...

, ranging in colour from brown to almost black. Their

thalli 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 were ...

somewhat resembles coarse, tangled hair, although sometimes regions around the periphery of thallus have flattened branches that are almost

foliose Foliose lichen is one of the morphological classes of lichens, which are complex organisms that arise from the symbiotic relationship between fungi and a photosynthetic partner, typically algae. This partnership allows lichen to live in diverse ...

Pseudocyphella Pseudocyphellae (singular ''pseudocyphella'') are structures in lichens that appear as tiny pores on the outer surface (the cortex of the lichen. They are caused when there is a break in the cortex of the lichen, and the medullary hyphae extend t ...

isidia An isidium is a vegetative reproductive structure present in some lichens. Isidia are outgrowths of the thallus surface, and are corticated (i.e., containing the outermost layer of the thallus), usually with a columnar structure, and consisting o ...

, and

soredia Soredia are common reproductive structures of lichens. Lichens reproduce asexually by employing simple fragmentation and production of soredia and isidia. Soredia are powdery propagules composed of fungal hyphae wrapped around cyanobacteria or gr ...

are not present on the thallus.

Ascospore An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera or s ...

s are colourless, and measure 7–12 by 6–8

μm The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Unit ...

. All

lichen spot test A spot test in lichenology is a spot analysis used to help identify lichens. It is performed by placing a drop of a chemical on different parts of the lichen and noting the colour change (or lack thereof) associated with application of the chemical ...

s are negative.

Habitat and distribution

''Pseudephebe'' grows on

siliceous rock Siliceous rocks are sedimentary rocks that have silica (SiO2) as the principal constituent. The most common siliceous rock is chert; other types include diatomite. They commonly form from silica-secreting organisms such as radiolarians, diatoms, or ...

s. It is a cool-temperate to arctic genus.

Species

*''

Pseudephebe mariensis ''Pseudephebe'' is a genus of fruticose lichens in the family Parmeliaceae. It contains three species that saxicolous lichen, grow on rocks. Taxonomy ''Pseudephebe'' was circumscription (taxonomy), circumscribed by French lichenologist Maurice ...

'' (Øvstedal, Common & Fryday) Øvstedal & Fryday (2019) *''

Pseudephebe minuscula ''Pseudephebe minuscula'' is a species of fruticose lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. In North America, it is known colloquially as coarse rockwool. It has an antitropical distribution. Description The lichen has a dark brown to almost black ...

'' (Nyl. ex Arnold) Brodo & D.Hawksw. (1977) *''

Pseudephebe pubescens ''Pseudephebe pubescens'', also known as 'fine rock wool', is a Temperate climate, temperate Alpine states, alpine lichen. It is a member of the genus ''Pseudephebe'', a lichen group characterized by dense mats of brown to near-black "hairs". Ha ...

'' (L.) M.Choisy (1930)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5233909 Parmeliaceae Lichen genera Lecanorales genera Taxa named by Maurice Choisy Taxa described in 1930