Lecanoromycetes is the largest class of

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a hybrid colony (biology), colony of algae or cyanobacteria living symbiotically among hypha, filaments of multiple fungus species, along with yeasts and bacteria embedded in the cortex or "skin", in a mutualism (biology), m ...

ized

fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...

. It belongs to the subphylum

Pezizomycotina Pezizomycotina is the largest subdivision of Ascomycota, containing the filamentous ascomycetes and most lichenized fungi. It is more or less synonymous with the older taxon Euascomycota. These fungi reproduce by fission rather than budding. Thi ...

in the

phylum In biology, a phylum (; : phyla) is a level of classification, or taxonomic rank, that is below Kingdom (biology), kingdom and above Class (biology), class. Traditionally, in botany the term division (taxonomy), division has been used instead ...

Ascomycota Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The def ...

. The asci (

spore In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual reproduction, sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for biological dispersal, dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores fo ...

-bearing cells) of the Lecanoromycetes most often release spores by rostrate dehiscence. The group is

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

(composed only of all the descendants of a common ancestor).

Genera of uncertain placement

There are several genera in the Lecanoromycetes that have not been placed into any order or family. These are: *'' Argopsis'' – 1 sp. *'' Ascographa'' – 1 sp. *'' Bartlettiella'' – 1 sp. *'' Bouvetiella'' – 1 sp. *'' Buelliastrum'' – 2 spp. *'' Haploloma'' – 1 sp. *'' Hosseusia'' – 3 spp. *'' Korfiomyces'' – 1 sp. *'' Maronella'' – 1 sp. *'' Notolecidea'' – 1 sp. *'' Petractis'' – 3 spp. *'' Piccolia'' – 10 spp. *'' Ravenelula'' – 2 spp. *'' Robincola'' – 1 sp. *'' Roburnia'' – 1 sp.

References

Fungus classes Lichen classes Taxa described in 1997 {{Lecanoromycetes-stub