saxicolous
A saxicolous lichen is a lichen that grows on rock. The prefix "sax" from the Latin means "rock" or "stone".
Characteristics
Saxicolous lichens exhibit very slow growth rates. They may develop on rock substrates for long periods of time, give ...
(rock-dwelling),
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
Verrucariaceae
The Verrucariaceae are a family of mostly lichenised fungi in the order Verrucariales. The lichen-forming species, which comprise the vast majority of the family, have a wide variety of thallus forms, and include crustose (crust-like), foliose ( ...
. It is a
marine
Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean.
Marine or marines may refer to:
Ocean
* Maritime (disambiguation)
* Marine art
* Marine biology
* Marine debris
* Marine habitats
* Marine life
* Marine pollution
Military
* ...
species that grows in the
littoral zone
The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal areas ...
, and therefore remains immersed in seawater for extended periods. Its
photobiont
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Paulbroadya petersii''.
The lichen was first formally described by Swedish lichenologist
Erik Acharius
Erik Acharius (10 October 1757 – 14 August 1819) was a Swedish botanist who pioneered the taxonomy of lichens and is known as the "father of lichenology." Acharius was famously the last pupil of Carl Linnaeus.
Life
Acharius was born in ...
as ''Verrucaria mucosa''. The original type specimens were collected by
Göran Wahlenberg
Georg (Göran) Wahlenberg (1 October 1780 – 22 March 1851) was a Sweden, Swedish natural history, naturalist. He was born in Filipstad Municipality, Kroppa, Värmland County.
Wahlenberg matriculated at Uppsala University in 1792, received ...
from northern Europe.
Cécile Gueidan
Cécile Gueidan is a mycologist and lichenologist who applies morphological and molecular biological methods to the origin and taxonomy of fungi that live in lichen symbioses and within rocks.
Early life and education
Gueidan began working on ...
and Holger Thüs 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 newly circumscribed ''
Wahlenbergiella
''Wahlenbergiella'' is a genus of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), crustose lichens in the family Verrucariaceae. It has three species, all of which live in marine intertidal zones where they get periodically immersed in seawater. ''Wahlenbergiella'' ...
'' in 2009 following
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 ...
-directed revisions of the family Verrucariaceae; it is the
type species
In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...
of that genus.
It is one of several marine Verrucariaceae lichens that have been investigated for use as possible
bioindicator
A bioindicator is any species (an indicator species) or group of species whose function, population, or status can reveal the qualitative status of the environment. The most common indicator species are animals. For example, copepods and other sma ...
s of coastal
water pollution
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities, so that it negatively affects its uses. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. Water ...