''Circinaria calcarea'' is a species of

crustose lichen Crustose lichens are lichens that form a crust which strongly adheres to the Substrate (biology), substrate (soil, rock, tree bark, etc.), making separation from the substrate impossible without destruction. The basic structure of crustose lichen ...

in the family

Megasporaceae Megasporaceae are a family of fungi belonging to the order Pertusariales. Taxa are lichenized with green algae, and grow on rocks, often in maritime climates close to fresh water. Phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the ...

. It was first described as a new species by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

in his 1753 work ''

Species Plantarum ' (Latin for "The Species of Plants") is a book by Carl Linnaeus, originally published in 1753, which lists every species of plant known at the time, classified into genus, genera. It is the first work to consistently apply binomial nomenclature ...

''. Linnaeus named it ''Lichen calcareus'', as he classified all lichens in the eponymously named genus. The species has had an extensive

taxonomic 280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme of classes (a taxonomy) and the allocation ...

history, resulting in dozens of

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

. In 2010, it was placed in its current genus, '' Circinaria'', following

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

analysis of the Megasporaceae. ''Circinaria calcarea'' has a

cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, a cosmopolitan distribution is the range of a taxon that extends across most or all of the surface of the Earth, in appropriate habitats; most cosmopolitan species are known to be highly adaptable to a range of climatic and en ...

, having been recorded from the Arctic, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Oceania, Central America, South America, and North America. It is a

saxicolous lichen A saxicolous lichen is a lichen that grows on rock. The prefix "sax" from the Latin means "rock" or "stone". Characteristics Saxicolous lichens exhibit very slow growth rates. They may develop on rock substrates for long periods of time, give ...

, and grows on

calcareous Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime (mineral), lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of Science, scientific disciplines. In zoology ''Calcare ...

, calciferous, and

basic rock A mafic mineral or rock is a silicate mineral or igneous rock rich in magnesium and iron. Most mafic minerals are dark in color, and common rock-forming mafic minerals include olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, and biotite. Common mafic rocks include b ...

References

Megasporaceae Lichen species Lichens of Asia Lichens of Australia Lichens of Europe Lichens of Oceania Lichens of Central America Lichens of South America Lichens of North America Lichens described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Lichens of the Arctic {{Pertusariales-stub