Pyxine coralligera Malme, Bih. Kongl. Svensk.

Mongkolsuk, Pachara, Meesim, Sanya, Poengsungnoen, Vasun & Kalb, Klaus, 2012, The lichen family Physciaceae in Thailand-I. The genus Pyxine, Phytotaxa 59 (1), pp. 32-54 : 43

7. Pyxine coralligera Malme, Bih. Kongl. Svensk. vetensk.-akad. handl. 23, afd. 3 (13): 40 (1897).

Type:— BRAZIL. Mato Grosso; Serra da Chapada, near São Jeronymo, ad rupes apricas, 3 June 1894, G. O. A. Malme [Exped. Prim. Regnell. Lichens 2749c]; lectotype selected by Swinscow & Krog 1975a: 53. ( S!). For synonymy see Kalb (1987).— Pyxine palniensis D. D. Awasthi, Phytomorphology 30 (4): 374 (1982). Holotype: INDIA. Tamil Nadu; Palni hills, Perumalmalai area near Perumal peak, on rock, 2000 m, 17 December 1970, D. D. Awasthi 70.1092 ( LWU!).

Thallus corticolous and saxicolous, 3–10 cm wide, loosely adnate. Lobes radiating, discrete to ± imbricate, plane to slightly convex, 0.5–1.0 mm wide, subrotund to truncate at the apices. Upper surface pale to dark grey, weakly pruinose towards the lobe tips or epruinose; true isidia and soralia absent. Pseudocyphellae laminal, irregular to linear or becoming ± reticulate subapically. Polysidiangia mainly laminal, occasionally marginal, scattered or clustered, nodular to subcylindrical or clavate, short, ± branched, pustulate, bursting apically to release corticate fragments but no soredia. Medulla (upper part) creamy yellow to yellow-orange or yellow-brown, lower part white. Lower surface black in the centre, paler towards the margin; rhizines ± dense, simple or irregularly branched. Apothecia rare, obscurascens type, 0.5–1.0 mm wide; disc epruinose. Internal stipe distinct, pale yellow to yellow-orange or yellow-brown, K + greenish, P + dirty orange-brown. Ascospores 16–20 × 5–7 μm. Pycnidia not seen.

Chemistry: Cortex K + yellow, C-, KC-, P + yellow, UV-; medulla upper part: K-, C-, P + orange, lower part: all spot tests negative; containing atranorin (minor), chloroatranorin (minor), testacein (major), unknown terpenes (minor).

Distribution and habitat:—A pantropical species, very common on bark and rocks, in tropical rainforests, dry dipterocarp forests and lower montane scrubs. Also in Australia, Africa, Asia, South America, Cuba and Papua New Guinea.

Notes:— P. coralligera is characterized by the polysidiangia, cortical atranorin, the pale yellow to yelloworange or yellow-brown medulla, obscurascens - type apothecia, an internal stipe that is concolorous with the medulla, and by the presence of medullary testacein and a characteristic array of terpenes. It is morphologically similar to P. retirugella , but the latter differs in containing additional norstictic acid and a different suite of terpenes. P. daedalea is morphologically similar and shows the same array of terpenes on TLC plates. But it is easily distinguished by the presence of laminal soralia. Co-chromatography of this species on TLC plates in solvents A, B' and C together with the morphologically identical P. palniensis shows that the two species have an identical array of terpenes. The only difference is a very low concentration of testacein in the latter so that no P-reaction could be observed.

Material from Thailand examined:— Chiang Mai; Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden, on the bark of Castanopsis costata in dry dipterocarp forest forest, 630 m, 18°50' N, 98°46' E, 26 January 1994, K . Boonpragob et al. 719, 731 ( RAMK).— Chiang Mai; Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden , on the bark of Syzygium claviflora , dry dipterocarp forest, 750 m, 1 July 1994, K . Boonpragob 2670, 2671, 2689 ( RAMK).— Chiang Mai; medicinal garden, on bark in a ± open Cinchona plantation near Doi Suthep-Pui National Park , 1085 m, 18°48'22'' N, 98°54'53'' E, 17 March 2008, K . Kalb (hb. Kalb 36780, 36788).— Loei; Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary, a way from in front of Head Quarter of Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary 700 m, on the bark of an unidentified tree in tropical rainforest, 700 m, 17°20'18'' N, 101°30'32'' E, 20 May 2009, S . Meesim & K . Buaruang MSPL 080 ( RAMK).— Loei; Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary, a way from in front of Head Quarter of Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary 500 m, on the rocks in dry dipterocarp forest, 700 m, 17°14'33'' N, 101°18'26'' E, 21 May 2009, S . Meesim & K . Buaruang MSPL 119 ( RAMK).— Loei; Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary, Helicopter Apron , on the rocks in lower montane scrub, 1487 m, 17°16'23'' N, 101°31'08'' E, 25 Much 2009, S . Meesim 86 ( RAMK).— Loei; Nahaew National Park , on the rocks in hill evergreen forest, 1260 m, 12 July 1995, P . Mongkolsuk et al. 4218 ( RAMK).— Loei; Nahaew National Park , on the rocks in dry dipterocarp forest, 900 m, 5 November 1995, P . Mongkolsuk et al. 6616, 6618 ( RAMK).— Loei; Nahaew National Park , on rocks in dry dipterocarp forest, 670 m, 6 November 1995, P . Mongkolsuk et al. 6767 ( RAMK)— Nakhon Ratchasima; Khao Yai National Park, Former Golf Course , on the bark of an unidentified tree in shrub forest, 750 m, 14°25' N, 101°23' E, 5 December 1999, P . Mongkolsuk 15842 ( RAMK).— Nakhon Ratchasima; Khao Yai National Park, Former Golf Course , on the bark of an unidentified tree in tropical rainforest, 750 m, 14°25' N, 101°23' E, 5 December 1999, P . Mongkolsuk 15990 ( RAMK).— Nakhon Ratchasima; Khao Yai National Park , the trail kilometer no. 33 “Nong Pakchee”, on the bark of an unidentified tree in tropical rainforest, 800 m, 14°20' N, 101°39' E, 23 May 2000, P . Mongkolsuk et al. 15996, 16028, 19511 ( RAMK) .