Extensive yellow crusts below limestone overhangs: a new taxon close to a minute epiphytic lichen |
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| Authors: | Jan Vondrák Mahroo Haji Moniri Jiří Malíček Jiří Košnar |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Inst. of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Zámek 1, Pr?honice, Czech Republic;2. Dept of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad Univ., Mashhad, Iran;3. Dept of Botany, Faculty of Science, Univ. of South Bohemia, ?eské, Budějovice, Czech Republic |
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| Abstract: | A conspicuous yellow crust forming extensive covers on some dry and shaded limestone rocks in Europe is described here as Caloplaca substerilis subsp. orbicularis M. Haji Moniri, Vondrák & Malí?ek subsp. nov. Based on nuITS rDNA, 28S nuLSU rDNA and mtSSU rDNA sequence data, the new taxon is closely related to Caloplaca substerilis and C. ulcerosa. The three taxa form a supported clade in the subfamily Xanthorioideae (Teloschistaceae), but none of the recently seggregated genera are suitable for them. In the ITS phylogeny, the new taxon forms a monophylum nested within C. substerilis. However, its extensive yellow thalli and absence of vegetative diaspores clearly distinguish it from Caloplaca substerilis (subsp. substerilis). Indeed, if it had not been for the molecular evidence, we would have described it at the rank of species. We suggest that the substrate switch and accompanying processes are responsible for the striking phenotypic difference between Caloplaca substerilis subsp. substerilis and C. substerilis subsp. orbicularis. |
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