Xanthoria elegans (Link) Th. Fr., 1860
| Common name | Elegant Sunburst Lichen | |
|---|---|---|
| Code |
XANTELE | |
| Field Characters | Small, leafy chlorolichen. This dusky-orange species is almost crustose in habit, closely attached to the substrate. Thalli are composed of narrow, convex, radiating lobes, typically with abundant apothecia centrally. No isidia or soredia. Lower surface with intact, white lower cortex, attached with short peg-like hapters (often sparse), lacking well-formed rhizines. Typically, there is also space between the lobes where the substrate is visible. | |
| Similar species & genera |
Xanthoria sorediata: sorediate, limited to calcareous rocks in the mountains.
Caloplaca: almost no lower cortex, lacking hapters, and typically covering the substrate with little to no substrate visible between lobes. |
|
| Ecology | Saxicolous. Occasional in the parkland, grassland, and mountains, rare in the foothills and southern boreal region of Alberta. In Edmonton this species is an occasional river valley and parkland saxicole, often on anthropogenic substrates such as grave stones (Haughland et al. 2022). | |
| Chemistry | Upper cortex PD-, K+ purple, C-, KC- (but difficult to discern due to K+ purple), UV- (variety of anthraquinones: parietin, fallacinal, emodin, teloschistin and parietinic acid by TLC according to Lindblom 2004b). Medulla typically white with all spot tests negative. | |
| Molecular support |
No new AB sequences generated. Well-supported at genus-level in existing phylogenetic analyses (Arup et al. 2013). | |
| Links | ||
| Gallery |
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- Xanthoria elegans
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- Xanthoria elegans
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- Xanthoria elegans, grassland
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- Xanthoria elegans, grassland
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- Xanthoria elegans
