''Lecidea'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
crustose
Crustose is a Habit (biology), habit of some types of algae and lichens in which the organism grows tightly appressed to a substrate, forming a biological layer. ''Crustose'' adheres very closely to the Substrate (biology), substrates at all poin ...
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 ...
s with a carbon-black ring or outer margin (
exciple
A lichen ( , ) is a hybrid colony of algae or cyanobacteria living symbiotically among filaments of multiple fungus species, along with yeasts and bacteria embedded in the cortex or "skin", in a mutualistic relationship. ) around the fruiting body disc (
apothecium
An ascocarp, or ascoma (: ascomata), 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. Ascoc ...
), usually (or always) found growing on (
saxicolous
This glossary of mycology is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to mycology, the study of fungi. Terms in common with other fields, if repeated here, generally focus on their mycology-specific meaning. Related terms can be found ...
) or in (
endolithic
An endolith or endolithic is an organism ( archaeon, bacterium, fungus, lichen, algae, sponge, or amoeba) that is able to acquire the necessary resources for growth in the inner part of a rock, mineral, coral, animal shells, or in the pores bet ...
) rock.
[Field Guide to California Lichens, Stephen Sharnoff, Yale University Press, 2014, ] Lichens that have such a black exciple are called
lecideine
A lichen ( , ) is a hybrid colony of algae or cyanobacteria living symbiotically among filaments of multiple fungus species, along with yeasts and bacteria embedded in the cortex or "skin", in a mutualistic relationship. , meaning "like ''Lecidea'', even if they are not in this genus.
[ Members of the genus are commonly called disk lichens or tile lichens.][
]
Selected species
According to the ''Dictionary of the Fungi'' (10th edition, 2008), the widespread genus contains an estimated 427 species.[
* '']Lecidea atrobrunnea
''Lecidea atrobrunnea'' is a group of lichen-forming fungi in the family Lecideaceae. Previously though to represent a single, widely distributed crustose lichen, recent research has shown that the name represents many unique lineages of morpho ...
''
* ''Lecidea hassei
''Lecidea hassei'' (Hasse's lecidea lichen) is an endolithic lichen that appears as tiny black, gray rimmed, plate-like or crinkled discs between crystals of rock in California. The main body grows ''inside'' solid rock (endolithic), and the cri ...
''
* ''Lecidea keimioeensis
''Lecidea keimioeensis'' (originally published as ''keimioeënsis'') is a species of crustose lichen. It was collected by Finnish botanist Kaarlo Linkola from , Finland, (for which the species is named), and identified as a new species by Edvard ...
''
* ''Lecidea laboriosa
''Lecidea laboriosa'' is a species of lichen that grows inside solid rock (endolithic), with only the small black disc-like fruiting bodies (apothecia) visible above the rock surface.Field Guide to California Lichens, Stephen Sharnoff, Yale Univ ...
''
* ''Lecidea lithophila
''Lecidea'' is a genus of crustose lichens with a carbon-black ring or outer margin ( exciple) around the fruiting body disc ( apothecium), usually (or always) found growing on (saxicolous) or in (endolithic
An endolith or endolithic is an or ...
''
References
*
Lecideales genera
Lichen genera
Taxa named by Erik Acharius
Taxa described in 1803
{{Lecanoromycetes-stub