class
Class or The Class may refer to:
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* Class (biology), a taxonomic rank
* Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects
* Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...
Myxogastria and the only member of its genus as well as the family Listerelliidae. The species is so far only found on the wattle genus '' Cladonia'', mostly in European temperate zones.
Characteristics
The sporangia are just 0.1 to 0.3 mm large, visible to the unaided eye as mere black-brown dots. The dehiscence lines are slightly lighter and clearly visible. They are unstiped, more or less hemispheric and flattened on the edge. The single layered peridium is tearing in four to six lobes during spore maturity and is purple-brown. It features dark lime tubercles only on the dehiscence lines.
A capillitium is less developed and is composed of pale purple-brown, slim, vermiculated strands, which are overgrown on the peridia. On low magnification, the 1 to 1.5
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 ...
thick strands look like string of pearls. On high magnification, there are from the centre of the strand on cup or pear-shaped links visible, which thickenings are slightly darker on the blunted end, but the stipes are sallow. The link becomes gradually developed near the edge. The strand is first twice as thick as the normal dark-coloured one, then constrictions appear on them. Then, the constrictions become apparent on them, which arrange it into light stipes and knots, become little by little slimmer and take the shape of a cup. Alternatively, the strand is lighter coloured from the beginning on and the knots rapidly develop from the collar-like constrictions.
The
spore
In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plants, algae, f ...
s are black-brown as spore mass and in transmitted light brownish yellow. They are on one side thin-walled, blur finely acanthoid and have a diameter from 7 to 8 µm.
Habitat
''Listerella paradoxa'' has been only found living on the thallae of the ''Cladonia'' species of
lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Cladonia rangiferina'', ''
Cladonia impexa
''Cladonia'' is a genus of moss-like lichens in the family Cladoniaceae. They are the primary food source for reindeer/caribou. ''Cladonia'' species are of economic importance to reindeer-herders, such as the Sami in Scandinavia or the Nenets i ...
'', ''
Cladonia arbuscula
''Cladonia arbuscula'' or the shrubby cup lichen is a species of cup lichen in the Cladoniaceae
The Cladoniaceae are a family of lichenized fungi in the order Lecanorales. It is one of the largest families of lichen-forming fungi, with about 5 ...
'', ''
Cladonia gracilis
''Cladonia gracilis'' or the smooth cup lichen is a species of fruticose, cup lichen in the family Cladoniaceae. It was first described as a new species by Carl Linnaeus in his 1753 work ''Species Plantarum''. German botanist Carl Ludwig Willde ...
'', ''
Cladonia tenuis
''Cladonia'' is a genus of moss-like lichens in the family Cladoniaceae. They are the primary food source for reindeer/caribou. ''Cladonia'' species are of economic importance to reindeer-herders, such as the Sami in Scandinavia or the Nenets i ...
''), in temperate zones mainly in Europe (Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Great Britain) but also partially in Russia and Canada. A collection from California is classified as uncertain.
Classification
The species and genus were first described in 1906 by
Eduard Adolf Wilhelm Jahn Eduard Adolf Wilhelm Jahn (20 May 1871, Berlin – 23 January 1942, Hann. Münden) was a German biologist and mycologist.
Biography
Jahn studied natural sciences at the Humboldt University of Berlin, especially biology, until he received his doctor ...
on the basis of a discovery in Geesthacht. Its exact taxonomic position was unclear from the beginning and is still uncertain. Jahn grouped it into a family because of its strands in the capillitium. In the first half of the 19th century however it was often grouped into the Dianemaceae, and at later times often into the Liceaceae because of the relationship.
The genus name of ''Listerella'' is in honour of
Arthur Hugh Lister
Arthur Hugh Lister (1830–1908) was a wine merchant and botanist, known for his research on slime molds.
Life
Lister was born in Upton House, Upton, Essex. He was the youngest son of Joseph Jackson Lister, a brother of the celebrated Joseph Lis ...
(1830–1908), who was an English wine merchant and botanist, known for his research on Mycetozoa.