Tuckermannopsis
Tuckermannopsis Gyel., 1933
| Common name | Wrinkle Lichens |
|---|---|
| Field Characters | Leafy, brown chlorolichens that often resemble fruticose lichens. Thalli of ascending to erect and often wrinkled lobes, often with ciliate, pycnidiate and/or ruffled margins, sparsely branching. Upper and lower cortices brown to pale brown, sometimes paler below. Rhizines typically sparse, concolorous with the lower cortex, and simple to branched. Pseudocyphellae punctiform on tubercles/warts or absent. Apothecia common, laminal or marginal, with brown discs. One species is sorediate, otherwise vegetative propagules lacking. Pycnidia common, black, resembling small barrels, marginal and/or terminal. Cilia common in some species. |
| Similar species & genera |
Melanelia group: typically appressed throughout or just the lobe tips ascending. |
| Ecology | Epiphytic and on downed wood, most common on conifers and birch. Abundant in the forested regions of Alberta, with greater diversity in older, more humid sites. |
| Chemistry | Cortex with melanin and sometimes atranorin (K+ yellow or K-). Medulla with alectoronic acid (UV+ blue white, PD-, K-, KC+ pink, C-) or fatty acids like lichesterinic and protolichesterinic acid (all spot tests negative, detectable only by TLC). |
| Molecular support |
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| Links |
Species recorded in Alberta: 6
- T. americana (Sprengel) Hale Syns.: Cetraria halei, C. ciliaris var. halei (ACIMS S5)
- T. chlorophylla (Willd.) Hale Syns.: Cetraria chlorophylla, C. scutata auct. non (Wulfen) Poetsch (ACIMS S4)
- T. orbata (Nyl.) M. J. Lai Syn.: Cetraria orbata (ACIMS S2 ?)
- T. platyphylla (Tuck.) Hale Syn.: Cetraria platyphylla Placement uncertain (Thell et al. 2009) (ACIMS S3S4)
- T. sepincola (Ehrh.) Hale Syn.: Cetraria sepincola, C. scutata (Wulfen) Poetsch non auct. Placement uncertain (Thell et al. 2009) (ACIMS S4)
- T. subalpina (Imshaug) Kärnefelt Syns: Cetraria subalpina, C. arborialis Placement uncertain (Thell et al. 2009) (ACIMS S3)
Click here for pdf key to the Tuckermannopsis of Alberta v.2025 (abbreviated)
Resources
Brodo, I. M. 2016. Keys to the lichens of North America. Revised and Expanded. Yale University Press, in collaboration with the Canadian Museum of Nature.
Brodo, I. M., S. D. Sharnoff, and S. Sharnoff. 2001. Lichens of North America. Yale University Press, New Haven and London.
Goward, T., B. McCune, and D. Meidinger. 1994. The Lichens of British Columbia Illustrated Keys. Part 1 – Foliose and Squamulose Species. Ministry of Forests Research Program, Province of British Columbia.
McMullin, R. T. 2023. Lichens. The macrolichens of Ontario and the Great Lakes Region of the United States. Firefly Books, Richmond Hill, Ontario.
