Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2002. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 1.

Life Habit: lichenized Thallus: squamulose to subfoliose, fruticose in one species squamules: scattered to contiguous or imbricate, 0.5-10 mm (rarely more) wide, plane to concave or convex, rounded or variously lobed, closely appressed to the substrate or ascending (to erect), attached by folds of the lower side, basal ends of squamules, rhizines, or rhizohyphal wefts upper surface: various shades of brown, smooth or rugulose to shallowly rimose, dull, lacking isidia and soredia upper cortex: paraplectenchymatous, 10-100 µm thick, composed of roundish-angular cells, with or without an amorphous epinecral layer medulla: white (yellow in one species), of intricately interwoven hyphae, filamentous to subparaplectenchymatous photobiont: primary one a green alga (Stichococcus), secondary photobiont absent; algal cells 5-14 µm in diam.; algal layer: irregularly dispersed or in vertical columns; forming a continuous or discontinuous layer lower cortex: (sub)paraplectenchymatous or lacking; rhizohyphae colorless or brown lower surface: pale to carbonaceous, bare, or with rhizohyphal weft, or with rhizines Ascomata: perithecial, laminal, immersed, broadly pyriform to subglobose, without involucrellum; exciple: hyaline, brown or brown-black to carbonaceous; interascal filaments: evanescent; hymenial gel: amyloid (I+ reddish or blue, KI+ blue); hymenial alga: present, globose to cuboid or elongate; ostiolar filaments (periphyses): present, simple to moderately branched, their walls becoming gelatinized in wet condition asci: bitunicate, thin-walled, clavate or cylindro-clavate, usually bisporous (rarely mono- or tetrasporous), wall non-amyloid ascospores: colorless or pale to dark brown, broadly ellipsoid to elongate-ellipsoid to subcylindrical; distal ascospore: mostly shorter and broader than the proximal one, thin-walled, smooth, without halo Conidiomata: pycnidia, of Staurothele-type, laminally immersed; conidiogenous layer: simple to convoluted conidia: bacilliform Secondary metabolites: none detected Geography: world-wide, mainly temperate Substrate: soil, detritus, mosses, rocks, rarely bark.