''Nanostictis'' 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 ...

lichenicolous 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 ...

(

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 ...

-dwelling)

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 ...

in the family

Stictidaceae The Stictidaceae are a family (biology), family of fungi in the order Ostropales. It has 30 genera and about 240 species. Taxonomy The family was circumscription (taxonomy), circumscribed by the Swedish mycologist Elias Magnus Fries in 1849. D ...

. These tiny fungi produce minute

fruiting bodies The sporocarp (also known as fruiting body, fruit body or fruitbody) of fungi is a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures, such as basidia or asci, are borne. The fruitbody is part of the sexual phase of a fungal life cyc ...

that remain embedded within their

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County * Host Island, in the Wilhelm Archipelago, Antarctica People * ...

lichens and are characterised by very slender, thread-like

ascospore In fungi, an ascospore is the sexual spore formed inside an ascus—the sac-like cell that defines the division Ascomycota, the largest and most diverse Division (botany), division of fungi. After two parental cell nucleus, nuclei fuse, the ascu ...

s divided by multiple cross-walls. The genus contains nine species that

parasitise Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

various lichen

hosts A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County * Host Island, in the Wilhelm Archipelago, Antarctica People * ...

, though its relationship to similar genera remains uncertain due to the lack of

molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, ...

studies on any ''Nanostictis'' species.

Taxonomy

The genus was

circumscribed In geometry, a circumscribed circle for a set of points is a circle passing through each of them. Such a circle is said to ''circumscribe'' the points or a polygon formed from them; such a polygon is said to be ''inscribed'' in the circle. * Circum ...

in 1954 by the Danish lichenologist Mogens Skytte Christiansen, with ''Nanostictis peltigerae'' assigned as the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

. The generic limits of ''Nanostictis'' remain unsettled. Its type species was separated from the superficially similar genus ''

Cryptodiscus ''Cryptodiscus'' is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Stictidaceae. Species , Species Fungorum ''Index Fungorum'' is an international project to index all formal names (Binomial nomenclature, scientific names) in the fungus K ...

'' mainly because it produces very slender, thread-like

s and lives exclusively on lichens, usually those in the order

Peltigerales Peltigerales is an order (biology), order of lichen-forming fungus, fungi belonging to the class (taxonomy), class Lecanoromycetes in the division (mycology), division Ascomycota. The taxonomy of the group has seen numerous changes; it was former ...

Molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, ...

analysis of two elongated-spored, lichenicolous fungi ('' C. epicladonia'' and '' C. galaninae'') showed that they sit firmly within ''Cryptodiscus'', even though they share several outward features with ''Nanostictis''. Their inclusion broadens the morphological concept of ''Cryptodiscus'' and blurs the once-clear distinction between the two genera. Because no species of ''Nanostictis'' has yet been sampled for DNA, its

monophyly 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 comm ...

and exact placement in the Stictidaceae remain untested; a thorough molecular study will be needed to decide whether ''Nanostictis'' should be maintained or merged with related lineages.

Description

''Nanostictis'' is a lichen-inhabiting (

) fungus that produces no visible

thallus Thallus (: 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. A thallus usually names the entir ...

of its own. Its minute

apothecia 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. As ...

start out completely embedded in the

lichen. They open through a tiny pore but often remain flush with the surface, so the pale stays deeply immersed and never splits away from the surrounding rim when dry. The margin itself is thin, colourless and smooth, lacking any crystalline deposits. The apothecial wall () is not clearly layered; it is built from short-celled, tightly glued

hypha A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one o ...

e or small, prismatic cells that may be hard to distinguish in section. The

hymenium The hymenium is the tissue layer on the hymenophore of a fungal fruiting body where the cells develop into basidia or asci, which produce spores. In some species all of the cells of the hymenium develop into basidia or asci, while in oth ...

(fertile spore-bearing tissue) contains numerous thread-like

paraphyses Paraphyses are erect sterile filament-like support structures occurring among the reproductive apparatuses of fungi, ferns, bryophytes and some thallophytes. The singular form of the word is paraphysis. In certain fungi, they are part of the f ...

that neither branch extensively nor turn blue in iodine tests. Cylindrical asci have thin lateral walls, a distinct apical cap, show no iodine

staining Staining is a technique used to enhance contrast in samples, generally at the Microscope, microscopic level. Stains and dyes are frequently used in histology (microscopic study of biological tissue (biology), tissues), in cytology (microscopic ...

reaction, and usually hold eight

s. These spores are colourless, very slender () and divided by many transverse

septa SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people througho ...

. Asexual reproductive bodies (

conidiomata Conidiomata (singular: Conidioma) are blister-like fruiting structures produced by a specific type of fungus called a coelomycete. They are formed as a means of dispersing asexual spores call conidia, which they accomplish by creating the blister- ...

) have not been observed.

Species

Nine species are accepted in ''Nanostictis''; all of them are lichenicolous. *'' Nanostictis caucasica'' – host: ''

Parmelia sulcata ''Parmelia sulcata'', commonly known as the hammered shield lichen or cracked-shield lichen, is a foliose lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. First described by Thomas Taylor in 1836, it is one of the most prevalent lichen species globally, ...

'' *'' Nanostictis christiansenii'' – host: ''

Lobaria pulmonaria ''Lobaria pulmonaria'' is a large epiphytic lichen consisting of an ascomycete fungus and a green algal partner living together in a symbiotic relationship with a cyanobacterium—a symbiosis involving members of three kingdoms of organisms. Com ...

'' *'' Nanostictis confusa'' – host: ''

Hypotrachyna ''Hypotrachyna'' is a genus of lichenized fungi within the family Parmeliaceae. According to the ''Dictionary of the Fungi'' (10th edition, 2008), the widespread genus contains about 198 species. ''Hypotrachyna'' was circumscribed by American lic ...

'' *'' Nanostictis heterodermiae'' – host: ''

Heterodermia ''Heterodermia'' is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Physciaceae. The genus has a widespread distribution, especially in tropical regions, and contains about 80 species. Description ''Heterodermia'' are subterranean or almost upright le ...

'' *'' Nanostictis nephromatis'' – host: ''

Nephroma arcticum ''Nephroma arcticum'', the arctic kidney lichen, is a species of foliose lichen, foliose (leafy), terricolous lichen, terricolous (ground-dwelling) lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. It has a yellowish-green thallus up to across made of lar ...

'' *'' Nanostictis peltigerae'' – host: ''

Peltigera ''Peltigera'' is a genus of approximately 100 species of foliose lichens in the family Peltigeraceae. Commonly known as the dog or pelt lichens, species of ''Peltigera'' are often terricolous (growing on soil), but can also occur on moss, trees ...

'' *'' Nanostictis pluriseptata'' – host: ''

Lobariella ''Lobariella'' is a genus of lichens belonging to the family Peltigeraceae The Peltigeraceae are a family of lichens in the order Peltigerales. The Peltigeraceae, which contains 15 genera and about 600 species, has recently (2018) been emended ...

'' gr. ''pallida'' *'' Nanostictis pseudocyphellariae'' – host: ''

Pseudocyphellaria ''Pseudocyphellaria'' is a genus of large, leafy lichens that are sometimes referred to as "specklebelly" lichens.Brodo, I. M., S. D. Sharnoff, and S. Sharnoff. 2001. ''Lichens of North America''. Yale University Press: New Haven. The genus has ...

'' *'' Nanostictis stictae'' – host: ''

Sticta ''Sticta'' is a genus of lichens in the family Peltigeraceae. The genus has a widespread distribution, especially in tropical areas, and includes about 114 species. These lichens have a leafy appearance, and are colored brown or black. ''Sticta'' ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q112788 Ostropales Ostropales genera Lichenicolous fungi Taxa described in 1954