''Astrothelium rubrostiolatum'' is a species of
corticolous (bark-dwelling)
lichen in the family
Trypetheliaceae
The Trypetheliaceae are a family of mainly lichen-forming fungi in the order Trypetheliales.
Genera
*'' Alloarthopyrenia'' – 1 sp.
*'' Aptrootia'' – 3 spp.
*'' Architrypethelium'' – 8 spp.
*''Astrothelium'' – ca. 275 spp.
*'' Bathel ...
. Found in Brazil, it was
formally described as a new species in 2017 by Marcela Eugenia da Silva Cáceres and
André Aptroot
André Aptroot ( Heemskerk, 1961) is a Dutch mycologist and lichenologist.
In 1993 he did his PhD at the University of Utrecht under the supervision of Robbert Gradstein (nl). His dissertation was titled "Systematic studies on pyrenocarpous l ...
. The
type specimen
In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes the ...
was collected by the authors along a trail near a
field station
Field research, field studies, or fieldwork is the collection of raw data outside a laboratory, library, or workplace setting. The approaches and methods used in field research vary across disciplines. For example, biologists who conduct fi ...
in the
Adolfo Ducke Forest Reserve
Adolfo Ducke Forest Reserve (Reserva Florestal Adolpho Ducke) is a protected section of the Amazon rainforest within the city of Manaus, Brazil.
The reserve was established in 1963 in honour of the entomologist and botanist Adolfo Ducke (Octo ...
(
Manaus); here it was found growing on tree bark in
old-growth
An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...
rainforest. The lichen has a dull yellowish
thallus
Thallus (plural: thalli), from Latinized Greek (), meaning "a green shoot" or " twig", is the vegetative tissue of some organisms in diverse groups such as algae, fungi, some liverworts, lichens, and the Myxogastria. Many of these organisms ...
lacking a prothallus, with spherical to pear-shaped
ascomata
An ascocarp, or ascoma (), is the fruiting body ( sporocarp) of an ascomycete phylum fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hyphae and millions of embedded asci, each of which typically contains four to eight ascospores. Ascocarps are mo ...
that are either immersed in or are below the thallus surface, typically arranged in groups of 7 to 25. The
ascospore
An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera o ...
s number eight per
ascus
An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera o ...
, are muriform (divided in regular chambers), and measure 90–125 by 25–30
μm
The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Uni ...
. The
species epithet Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany)
A botanical name ...
refers to the red colour in the
ostiole
An ''ostiole'' is a small hole or opening through which algae or fungi release their mature spores.
The word is a diminutive of "ostium", "opening".
The term is also used in higher plants, for example to denote the opening of the involuted ...
s.
Thin-layer chromatography
Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) is a chromatography technique used to separate non-volatile mixtures.
Thin-layer chromatography is performed on a sheet of an inert substrate such as glass, plastic, or aluminium foil, which is coated with a t ...
revealed the presence of an
anthraquinone
Anthraquinone, also called anthracenedione or dioxoanthracene, is an aromatic organic compound with formula . Isomers include various quinone derivatives. The term anthraquinone however refers to the isomer, 9,10-anthraquinone (IUPAC: 9,10-dioxoan ...
that was presumed to be
parietin
Parietin is the predominant cortical pigment of lichens in the genus ''Caloplaca'', a secondary product of the lichen '' Xanthoria parietina'', and a pigment found in the roots of Curled Dock (''Rumex crispus''). It has an orangy-yellow color a ...
.
References
rubrostiolatum
Lichen species
Lichens described in 2017
Lichens of North Brazil
Taxa named by André Aptroot
Taxa named by Marcela Cáceres
{{Dothideomycetes-stub