Image of Collema crispum

Description:

Slo.: no name - syn.: Collema cheileum (Ach.) Ach. - Habitat: light wood, Fagus sylvatica, Picea abies, Juglans regia, Corylus avellana dominant; slightly inclined mountain slope, east-southeast aspect; calcareous, skeletal ground; mostly in shade, relatively warm place, partly protected from direct rain by tree canopies; average precipitations ~ 3.000 mm/year, average temperature 7-9 deg C, elevation 590 m (1.950 feet), alpine phytogeographical region. Substratum: mostly vertical surface of calcareous rocks of a stony fence along the path; sometimes associated with mosses. Comments: This find seems to fit well to the traits of (former) Collema crispum as described in Ref. 1 and 2. Morphological traits as well as substratum seem to be right. Also the picture published in Wirt (1995) (Ref.1), which is also cited as relevant in Smith et al. (2009) (Ref.2) shows great similarity with this find. The same seems to be true for the pictures published in Ref.5. The only objection may be, that in this find there are only a few flattened isidia seen. Apparently most of them are still young and hence +/- globose. Collema crispum doesn't seem to be a valid name any more. Recent molecular studies have changed taxonomy of jelly fungi (Collemataceae) drastically. The main morphological distinguishing trait between the largest and commonest genera Collema and Leptogium, that is thallus cortex character, is clearly proven not to be monophyletic. Phylogenetic molecular study (Otlora et al. 2013) (Ref.6) has been done (based on the best unconstrained trees), which resulted in some clades, for which there was no morphology supporting such a classification. In 2014 in order to reconcile morphology and molecular data, a new classification for Collemataceae was proposed (Ref.3). Based on slightly constrained topology ten clades were proposed. All of them can be characterized using a combination of traits as habitat preference, thallus habit, ascospore characteristics, thallus anatomical structure, and cortex. Now, following Index Fungorum the name Collema crispum (Hudson) Weber ex Wigg. is a synonym. Corresponding current name is Blennothallia crispa (Huds.) Otlora, P.M. Jrg. & Wedin, Fungal Diversity 64: 282 (2014). According to the key published in Otlora et al. (2014) (Ref.3) genus Blennothallia should have thallus with partially paraplectenchymatous medulla (a fungal tissue consisting of more or less isodiametric, rounded to angular cells) and Nostoc photobiont in short chains with less than 3 cells. Both traits clearly do not correspond to my find. According to the key the observed non-paraplectenchymatous medulla and very long Nostoc chains speak in favor of (new) Collema or (new) Lathagrium genus. But Collema is now mainly a corticolous genus and my find is strictly saxicolous. Also in the list of species C. crispum doesn't exist. Similarly in the (new) genus Lathagrium the name L. crispum does not exist. Also, for (new) genus Lathagrium very frequent apothecia are characteristic. But I haven't found a single one on more than ten specimens carefully checked. Thus I don't know how to properly name this find (even not to genus level). I will stay with old Collema crispum although it is possible that this find is not that or that I missed something in this complex naming issue? Any help or idea is very much welcome. Thallus loosely attached to the rock by scattered whitish hapters; photographed in wet state after rainy days; isidiate; blackish-brown and fragile when dry. Thallus up to 20 x 5 cm large but usually much smaller; many (>20) specimens present all along the stony fence. Herbarium: Mycotheca and lichen herbarium (LJU-Li) of Slovenian Forestry Institute, Vena pot 2, Ljubljana, Index Herbariorum LJF Ref.: (1) V. Wirth, Die Flechten Baden-Wrttembergs, Teil.1., Ulmer (1995), p 354. (2) C.W.Smith, et all, The lichens of Great Britain and Ireland, The British Lichen Society, (2009), p 349. (3) Otlora, M., Jrgensen, P., Wedin, M. (2014) A revised generic classification of the jelly lichens, Collemataceae, Fungal diversity, 64:: 275-293 available at: http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:693928/FULLTEXT03 (4) F.S. Dobson, Lichens, The Richmonds Publishing Ca.LTD (2005), p 151. (5) http://nhm2.uio.no/botanisk/cgi-bin/lav_foto.pl?gen=Blennothallia&sp=crispa zelo podobne slike (6) Otlora MAG, Aragn G, Martnez I, Wedin M (2013) Cardinal characters on a slippery slope - a reevaluation of phylogeny, character evolution, and evolutionary rates in the jelly lichens (Collemataceae s. str). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 68:185-198 (available at: https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:677720/FULLTEXT01.pdf)