Lepraria cryptovouauxii Kukwa, Flakus & Guzow-Krzeminska

Guzow-Krzeminska, Beata, Jablonska, Agnieszka, Flakus, Adam, Pamela Rodriguez-Flakus,, Kosecka, Magdalena & Kukwa, Martin, 2019, Phylogenetic placement of Leprariacryptovouauxii sp. nov. (Lecanorales, Lecanoromycetes, Ascomycota) with notes on other Lepraria species from South America, MycoKeys 53, pp. 1-22 : 10-13

Lepraria cryptovouauxii Kukwa, Flakus & Guzow-Krzeminska sp. nov. Fig. 4 A–C

Diagnosis.

Species very similar to Lepraria vouauxii , but differing in the distinct phylogenetic position within the genus (Fig. 1), in substitution of several nucleotide positions in nucITS (Table 2) and the occurrence in high altitudes of the Andes in South America.

Type.

Bolivia. Dept. La Paz; Prov. Franz Tamayo, Área Natural de Manejo Integrado Nacional APOLOBAMBA, road Pelechuco-Keara, 14°41'23"S, 69°08'02"W, elev. 4370 m, open high Andean vegetation, terricolous, 17 Nov. 2014, M. Kukwa 14848a (holotype UGDA, isotype LPB).

Description.

Thallus crustose, continuous, leprose, placodioid, up to 0.4 mm thick, distinctly grey-yellow, orange-yellow to brownish orange in colour; crisped margins absent, but some parts obscurely lobate; prothallus disappearing with age; hypothallus as layer of densely intertwined hyphae, hyphae hyaline, c. 3 μm wide; rhizohyphae present, brown pigmented, 3-3.5 μm wide; granules globose or subglobose, 20-70 μm in diameter, discrete, ecorticate, with outer part consisting of incomplete layer of hyphae (c. 3 μm wide) and incrusted with irregular groups of crystals insoluble in K, granules often forming compound units up to 100 μm in diameter (in one sample, Flakus 17682, up to c. 300 μm, Fig. 4C).

Photobiont green, coccoid, cells globose to subglobose, 5-11 μm.

Chemistry.

Pannaric acid-6-methylester (+, major), 4-oxypannaric acid-6-methyl ester (+, minor), vouauxii unknown 1 sensu Tønsberg (1992) ( ±, trace) and rarely traces of anthraquinones and atranorin (only in Flakus 8673).

Habitat and distribution.

Lepraria cryptovouauxii grows on soil, rocks, or terricolous and saxicolous bryophytes in open and dry to moderately humid habitats at elevations between c. 3350 and 4790 m a.s.l.

Molecular data are available only for four Bolivian samples, but, judging on the basis of the ecological characteristic of other specimens and the altitudes they were collected in South America, we assume that L. cryptovouauxii occurs also in Chile, Ecuador, and Peru; the previous terricolous, muscicolous, or saxicolous records from the high Andes in South America belong here ( Laundon 1989; Leuckert and Kümmerling 1991; Flakus and Kukwa 2007; Flakus et al. 2011a, 2015).

Few specimens with the same chemistry and similar morphology were collected on wood and tree bark (Flakus 7872, 8381; see Flakus and Kukwa 2007, Flakus 18440 and Kukwa 16829 collected in Dept. Tarija) are excluded from specimen list of L. cryptovouauxii due to the different habitat (cloud forests) and lower altitudes (up to c. 2300 m a.s.l.) on which they were collected. They may represent L. vouauxii or another undescribed taxon, but their nucITS sequences have not been obtained yet.

Etymology.

The name refers to the similarity in morphology and secondary chemistry to Lepraria vouauxii .

Additional specimens examined.

BOLIVIA. Dept. La Paz: Prov. Bautista Saavedra, Área Natural de Manejo Integrado Nacional Apolobamba, between la Curva and Charazani, 15°08'09"S, 69°02'03"W, 3780 m alt., open area with shrubs, terricolous, 15 Nov. 2014, M. Kukwa 14675 (LPB, UGDA); Prov. Franz Tamayo, Área Natural de Manejo Integrado Nacional Apolobamba, near Puyo Puyo village, 14°56'55"S, 69°07'58"W, 4795 m alt., high Andean open vegetation, terricolous, 5 July 2010, A. Flakus 17683, 17692, P. Rodriguez (KRAM, LPB); Prov. Manco Kapac, Horca del Inca Mt. near Copacabana village, 16°10'15"S, 69°05'05"W, 3974 m alt., 18 June 2006, A. Flakus 8671.1, 8673 (KRAM, LPB); Prov. Murillo, near Cumbre pass, Puna, 16°19'18"S, 68°04'42"W, 4450 m alt., 17 June 2006, A. Flakus 8593.1 (KRAM, LPB, UGDA); Prov. Murillo, near Cumbre pass, Puna, 4672 m alt., 16°20'14"S, 68°02'20"W, 13 May 2006, A. Flakus 5729, 5730, 5731, 5733, 5738, 5740 (KRAM, LPB); ibidem, alt. 4604 m, 16°21'59"S, 68°02'37"W, 13 May 2006, A. Flakus 5791, 5798 (KRAM, LPB); near Cumbre pass, 4550 m alt., 16°19'18"S, 68°04'42"W, high Andean Puna vegetation, on mosses, June 2006, A. Flakus 8584.1, 8586, 8597.1 8600, 8603, 8605, 8606 (KRAM, LPB, UGDA); Prov. Omasuyos, El Dragon hill near Chahualla, 15°51'17"S, 69°00'40"W, 3850 m alt., Puna Húmeda vegetation, saxicolous, 6 July 2010, A. Flakus 17812, P. Rodriguez (KRAM, LPB); Dept. Potosí: Prov. Nor Lípez, Pinturas Rupestres near Villamar Mallcu village, 21°46'20"S, 67°29'05"W, 4038 m alt., open semi-desert high Andean area, terricolous, 6 Dec 2009, A. Flakus 14814, P. Rodriguez (KRAM, LPB). Chile. Terr. Magallanes, Lago del Toro (L. Maravilla), Estancia Río Payne, above the river, on soil, 15 March 1941, R. Santesson 6594 (S). Ecuador. Prov. León: Railway station Cotopaxi, alt. 3550 m, on bare soil in Páramo, 26 Apr 1939, E. Asplund L 63 (S). PERU. Dept. Ancash: Prov. Huaraz, Huaraz, 3500 m alt., on soil, 22 Nov 1972, C. de Graaf (UGDA); Dept. Arequipa: Prov. Caylloma, near Cabanaconde village, semi-desert open mountain area, 3462 m alt., 15°37'56"S, 71°57'49"W, terricolous, 2006, A. Flakus 9531, 9532, 9533, 9644 (KRAM); Valle del Colca, above Tapay village, open mountain area, alt. 3705 m, 15°33'56"S, 71°55'32"W, terricolous, 2006, A. Flakus 9692, 9693, 9766 (KRAM); near Socorro village, 3349 m alt., 15°38'32"S, 71°43'22"W, terricolous, 2006, A. Flakus 9416, 9419 (KRAM); between Soro and Llahuar villages, 15°34'41"S, 72°01'01"W, 2100 m alt., open semi-desert montane area, on soil and bryophytes over rocks, 6 July 2008, A. Flakus 10135, 10139, M. Kukwa 6107, 6108 (KRAM, UGDA); Dept. Cuzco: prov. Urubamba, valley of Rio Piri, NW of Ollantaytambo, 13°06'S, 72°22'W, 3400 m alt., on soil, 23 March 1981 R. Santesson P86: 17 (S); Dept. Lima: Prov. Huarochiri, valley of Rio Santa Eulalia, NE of Carampoma, 11°38'S, 76°27'W. c. 3700 m alt., on bryophytes, 15 Feb 1981, R. Santesson P24: 5, R. Moberg (S); Dept. Junin: Prov. Tarma, c. 10 km (road distance) NNE of Palca, 11°18'S, 75°32'W, c. 2600 m alt., on soil, 7 Feb 1981, R. Santesson P12: 60, R. Moberg (S - specimen of Lepraria diffusa ).

Selected specimens of Lepraria vouauxii examined for comparison.

Canada. Canadian Arctic Archipelago: Ellesemere I., Eureka, East Wind Lake, 80°05'N, 85°37'W, on terricolous mosses, 31 July 1999, F. Daniels s.n. (UGDA L-15825). Italy. Umbria: Monte Corona, vicinity of Eremo dell’Assunta Incoronata, 700 m alt., on rock, Jan 2001, A. Zwolicki s.n. (UGDA L-10052); ibidem, on Quercus sp., Jan 2001, A. Zwolicki s.n. (UGDA L-10148). Poland. Pojezierze Iławskie: Szymbark, Teutonic castle, 53°38'38"N, 19°28'57"E, on brick, 4 July 2003, J. Boczkaj, M. Kukwa s.n. (UGDA L-10020); Bory Dolnośląskie: Przewóz, on brick, 14 Sept 2000, Š. Bayerová et al. (UGDA L-10720). Ukraine. Opilya: Ivano-Frankivsk region, Halych district, Kosova Hora near Burshtyn, 49°13'25,7"N, 24°42'07,6"E, 300 m alt., steppe vegetation, on gypsum, 27 June 2003, L. Śliwa 1991 (UGDA L-11320).

Notes.

Lepraria cryptovouauxii and L. vouauxii are practically indistinguishable in morphology and secondary chemistry. The only difference we could observe is the colour of thallus, which is more intensively orange-yellow in L. cryptovouauxii , while L. vouauxii tends to be more greyish green. However, Lendemer (2013a) mentioned similar more distinctly coloured specimens for L. vouauxii in material from North America. Whether those samples represent another yet undescribed species has not been resolved. The brighter colour observed in L. cryptovouauxii can be caused by a higher concentration of dibenzofurans which may act as a sunscreen in the very sunny habitats of the Andes. Similar tendency was observed also for L. diffusa (J.R.Laundon) Kukwa, in which thalli were more intensively coloured in sunny places in comparison to samples from shaded situations ( Kukwa 2006b). Dibenzofurans, when in high concentration, can have a colour visible on TLC plates (before spraying with sulphuric acid), which suggest that they may play a sunscreen role as other pigmented substances and determine the colour of thallus ( Kukwa 2006b).

According to Lendemer (2013a), L. vouauxii lacks brown rhizohyphae, which are present in the new species. To confirm this character as a possible discriminating feature, several specimens of L. vouauxii were studied to check the colour of rhizohyphae. We found that, similar to L. cryptovouauxii , rhizohyphae can be brown, but in some specimens they were very sparse, in some formed well-visible layer between the thallus and substrate, but some thalli lacked those hyphae. Tønsberg (1992) also mentioned the presence of brown rhizohyphae (as hypothallus). Apparently, L. vouauxii shows variation in the development and colour of this structure.

Despite the lack of morphological and chemical differences, L. cryptovouauxii can be distinguished on the basis of its distribution as it occurs in the high Andes in South America, whereas L. vouauxii remains unconfirmed from South America and genetically known only from Europe (Fig. 1; Ekman and Tønsberg 2002; Mark et al. 2016). The habitat preferences also differ to some extent as L. cryptovouauxii grows only on soil, rocks, or saxicolous and terricolous bryophytes, whereas L. vouauxii occurs on various substrates, including tree bark, rocks, and soil ( Tønsberg 1992; Kukwa 2006b; Flakus and Kukwa 2007; Lendemer 2013a).

Lepraria diffusa is morphologically somewhat similar and also produces dibenzofurans; however, it has aggregate thallus (sensu Lendemer 2011b), and it produces oxypannaric acid-2-methylester ( Laundon 1989; Leuckert and Kümmerling 1991; Leuckert et al. 1995; Elix and Tønsberg 2004; Lendemer 2013a).

Lepraria xerophila Tønsberg is the species which also contains pannaric acid-6-methylester as the major secondary metabolite, but it differs in placodioid thalli with crisped margins ( Tønsberg 2004; Lendemer 2011b, 2013a). This metabolite is present also in some chemotypes of L. tenella (Tuck.) Lendemer & B.P. Hodk. (syn. Leprocaulon tenellum (Tuck.) Nyl.), but this species differs in the almost constant production of lecanoric acid (at least always present together with pannaric acid-6-methylester) and atranorin and the development of pseudopodetia ( Lamb and Ward 1974; Bungartz et al. 2013; Lendemer and Hodkinson 2013).