Sticta narinioana B. Moncada, Ossowska & Luecking, 2022

Ossowska, Emilia Anna, Moncada, Bibiana, Kukwa, Martin, Flakus, Adam, Rodriguez-Flakus, Pamela, Olszewska, Sandra & Luecking, Robert, 2022, New species of Sticta (lichenised Ascomycota, lobarioid Peltigeraceae) from Bolivia suggest a high level of endemism in the Central Andes, MycoKeys 92, pp. 131-160 : 131

Sticta narinioana B. Moncada, Ossowska & Luecking sp. nov.

Fig. 8

Diagnosis.

Differing from S. aymara in the predominantly marginal and horizontally projecting isidia, the slightly projecting lower tomentum, giving the impression of marginal cilia, the absence of a secondary tomentum and the more densely arranged cyphellae.

Type.

Colombia. Dept. Nariño; Laguna de la Cocha , Reserva el Encanto Andino, sendero al páramo, 01°04'12.3"N, 77°07'38.1"W, elev. 2810 m, andine forest, epiphytic on tree trunk, 24 Oct 2013, B. Moncada & R. Lücking 7614 (holotype UDBC, isotype B) .

Description.

Primary photobiont cyanobacterial ( Nostoc ). Stipe absent. Thallus orbicular to irregular, up to 5 cm diam., moderately branched, with 2-5 branches per 5 cm radius, branching pleurotomous; lobes suborbicular to flabellate, interspaced to adjacent, plane to undulate, with their apices rounded to somewhat truncate and revolute and their margins entire to sinuous, not thickened; lobe internodes (3-)5-10 mm long, (3-)5-8(-10) mm broad; thallus subcoriaceous. Upper surface smooth to uneven-rugose towards the centre, greyish-brown when fresh, light to medium yellowish-brown with darker apices in the herbarium, somewhat shiny; surface glabrous, without papillae, pruina or maculae; true marginal cilia absent, but lower tomentum partly projecting beyond the margins and resembling cilia. Apothecia rare to moderately abundant, submarginal, dispersed, subpedicellate, with invagination on lower side, up to 2 mm diam.; disc orange-brown, somewhat shiny; margin densely hirsute, with white hairs. Vegetative propagules present, abundant, in the form of isidia, predominantly marginal, becoming branched and somewhat coralloid, terminally cylindrical, but with the base flattened, more or less obliquely orientated, up to 0.1 mm long and 0.03 mm broad, dark brown and darker than the thallus, shiny. Lower surface somewhat uneven, beige, somewhat darker towards the centre; primary tomentum dense and comparatively thick to the margin, fasciculate, soft, whitish to cream-coloured or pale brownish; secondary tomentum absent, except for the lower sides of the apothecia. Rhizines absent. Cyphellae frequent, 10-20 per cm2 towards the thallus centre and 20-50 per cm2 towards the margin, dense, rounded to somewhat irregular, urceolate with wide pore, erumpent, remaining below the level of the primary tomentum, with the margin raised and involute, whitish to cream-coloured, with or without tomentum; pore 0.3-1.5 mm diam.; basal membrane ± smooth, white, K-, C-, KC-, Pd-. Medulla compact, cream, K-, C-, KC-, Pd-. No substances detected by TLC.

Upper cortex paraplectenchymatous, 20-40 μm thick, consisting of 2-4 layers of cells 8-15 μm diam. with thin, hyaline walls and one layer of smaller cells with thicker, yellowish-brown walls. Photobiont layer 20-30 μm thick, its cells 5-10 μm diam. Medulla 50-100 μm thick, its hyphae 2.5-5 μm broad, without crystals. Lower cortex paraplectenchymatous, 15-30 μm thick, consisting of 2-3 cell layers; cells 5-10 μm diam., their walls 1-2 μm thick, but lowermost walls much thicker. Hairs of lower primary tomentum 100-200 μm long, in fascicles of 5-20, hyphae simple, septate with partly intertwined apices. Cyphella cavity up to 150 μm deep; cells of basal membrane without papillae or with one papillae. Apothecia biatorine, up to 500 μm high, without distinct stipe; excipulum up to 100 μm broad, laterally with projecting hairs in groups, up to 0.5 mm long and 4-5 μm broad. Hypothecium 60-80 μm high, light yellowish-green. Hymenium 80-110 μm high; epihymenium 15-20 μm high, orange, with pigment granules, without gelatinous upper layer. Asci 8-spored, ascospores fusiform, 1-septate, 35-40 × 7-8 μm.

Habitat and distribution.

Sticta narinioana is known as epiphyte from two localities of well-preserved (sub-)andine forest in southern Colombia.

Etymology.

The epithet honours Antonio Amador José Nariño (y Álvarez del Casal) (1765-1823), one of the critical architects of the independence of Colombia and after whom the Department of Nariño was named.

Additional material examined.

Colombia. Dept. Nariño; Laguna de la Cocha , Reserva el Encanto Andino, sendero al páramo, 01°04'12.3"N, 77°07'38.1"W, 2810 m elev., andine forest, epiphytic on tree trunk, 24 October 2013, B. Moncada & R. Lücking 7525 (B, UDBC). Boyacá: Garagoa, Vereda Ciénaga, Valvanera, Reserva Privada El Secreto; 12 June 2014, D. Simijaca et al. 2044 (B, UDBC) .

Notes.

Sticta narinioana is closely related to the Bolivian S. aymara described above. Both taxa are cyanobacterial, isidiate species, but S. aymara has largely laminal isidia and the lower tomentum is not projecting to resemble cilia. Additionally, the cyphellae are less densely arranged and smaller.

Figures

Figure 8. Morphology and anatomy of Sticta narinioana (A Moncada & Luecking 7525 B-F Simijaca et al. 2044) A thallus in situ B lobe tip with apothecia C lobe margin with isidia D section through thallus E section through apothecium F ascospores. Scale bars: 10 mm (A); 1 mm (B, C); 50 μm (D); 100 μm (E); 10 μm (F).