''Shackletonia'' 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 ...

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.fungi 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 ...

in the family

Teloschistaceae The Teloschistaceae are a large family of mostly lichen-forming fungi belonging to the class Lecanoromycetes in the division Ascomycota. The family, estimated to contain over 1800 species, was extensively revised in 2013, including the creation o ...

, they are lichenicolous, and muscicolous species and known from Antarctica and southern

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...

(Arup et al. 2013). The genus 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 Ulrik Søchting, Patrik Frödén and Ulf Arup in Nordic J. Bot. vol.31 (1) on page 55 in 2013. The genus name of ''Shackletonia'' is in honour of

Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of An ...

(1874–1922), who was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

. According to

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

analysis the genera '' Erichansenia'' and ''Shackletonia'' are positioned on the outermost position to the other genera of the Xanthorioideae subfamily, similarly as in phylogenetic trees published by Arup et al. (2013), Søchting et al. (2014b), and Garrido-Benavent et al. (2016). The genus Shackletonia is distinguished from other Xanthorioideae groups by its unique chemistry, producing 5- and 7-chloroemodin and their derivatives. ''Shackletonia hertelii'' and ''Shackletonia siphonospora'' have been found in the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

. They are a

nutrient A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excret ...

source of

Amphipoda Amphipoda is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. Amphipods range in size from and are mostly detritivores or scavengers. There are more than 9,900 amphipod species so far desc ...

in the Antarctica.W.R. Siegfried, P.R. Condy and R.M. Laws (Editor)

Species

As accepted by

Species Fungorum ''Index Fungorum'' is an international project to index all formal names (scientific names) in the fungus kingdom. the project is based at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, one of three partners along with Landcare Research and the Institute of Mi ...

; *''

Shackletonia buelliae ''Shackletonia'' is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae, they are lichenicolous, and muscicolous species and known from Antarctica and southern Patagonia (Arup et al. 2013). The genus was circumscribed by Ulrik Søchtin ...

'' *'' Shackletonia hertelii'' *''

Shackletonia insignis ''Shackletonia'' is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae, they are lichenicolous, and muscicolous species and known from Antarctica and southern Patagonia (Arup et al. 2013). The genus was circumscribed by Ulrik Søchtin ...

'' -

Livingston Island Livingston Island (Russian name ''Smolensk'', ) is an Antarctic island in the Southern Ocean, part of the South Shetlands Archipelago, a group of Antarctic islands north of the Antarctic Peninsula. It was the first land discovered south of 60 ...

*''

Shackletonia siphonospora ''Shackletonia'' is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae, they are lichenicolous, and muscicolous species and known from Antarctica and southern Patagonia (Arup et al. 2013). The genus was circumscribed by Ulrik Søchtin ...

'' In September 2022, a new species of lichen was found on

James Ross Island James Ross Island is a large island off the southeast side and near the northeastern extremity of the Antarctic Peninsula, from which it is separated by Prince Gustav Channel. Rising to , it is irregularly shaped and extends in a north–south ...

(in the

Antarctic Peninsula The Antarctic Peninsula, known as O'Higgins Land in Chile and Tierra de San Martín in Argentina, and originally as Graham Land in the United Kingdom and the Palmer Peninsula in the United States, is the northernmost part of mainland Antarctic ...

), ''Shackletonia backorii''. Former species; * ''S. cryodesertorum'' = '' Erichansenia cryodesertorum'' * ''S. sauronii'' = '' Erichansenia sauronii''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q27990014 Teloschistales Teloschistales genera Lichen genera Taxa described in 2013