Punctelia caseana Lendemer & B.P. Hodk., 2010
| Common name | Case’s Speckled Shield |
|---|---|
| Code | PUNCCAS |
| Field Characters | Medium to large leafy chlorolichen. Thalli loosely appressed to slightly ascending, with rounded to slightly angular lobes 3-10 mm across, forming up-to-palm-sized (or occasionally much larger) thalli. Upper cortex grey, green-grey to lightly browned at the lobe tips, wrinkled to slightly reticulate. The lobe tips vary from epruinose to sparsely pruinose. Laminal pseudocyphellae abundant, developing pale. granular, aggregated soredia. Lower cortex white to brown, with short, simple rhizines that resemble a “buzz cut”. Apothecia rare. |
| Similar genera |
Flavopunctelia: yellow-green upper cortex (usnic acid, KC+ yellow), lower cortex tan. In shaded situations the two taxa can be confused.
Parmelia: lobes typically more angular, smaller, lower cortex black and rhizines typically branching. |
| Ecology | Epiphytic and on downed wood. Occasional across the boreal and parkland regions, including urban naturalized parks (Edmonton, Haughland et al. 2022). |
| Chemistry | Upper cortex K+yellow, PD- or PD+ pale yellow, C-, KC-, UV- (atranorin). Medulla K-, PD-, C- or C+ pink or red, KC-, UV- (lecanoric acid). |
| Molecular support |
High, but only a single sequence generated to date. Our sequence grouped with Punctelia caseana in both our re-analysis of Lendemer and Hodkinson (2010), and Alors et al. (2016) in Haughland et al. (2022), demonstrating reciprocal monophyly of P. caseana and P. jeckeri. More material from across Alberta should be sequenced. |
| Links | |
| Gallery |
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- Punctelia caseana, Chickakoo Natural Area, AB
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- Punctelia caseana lower cortex with short rhizines, Chickakoo Natural Area, AB
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- Punctelia caseana, Chickakoo Natural Area, AB
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- Punctelia caseana, Chickakoo Natural Area, AB
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- Large Punctelia caseana with Parmelia sulcata above, Chickakoo Natural Area, AB
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- Punctelia caseana, wet, Edmonton region, AB
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- Punctelia caseana lower cortex with short rhizines, Chickakoo Natural Area, AB
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- Punctelia caseana, ABMI Collection
