Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2004. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 2.

Life habit: lichenized Thallus: crustose or placodioid, monophyllus sometimes dispersed into elements upper surface: yellow or orange, pruinose, with or without schizidia schizidia: scaly or bullate upper cortex: paraplectenchymatous covered by a thick epinecral layer of crystals and dead algal cells medulla: white, composed of loosely arranged hyphae photobiont: primary one a chlorococcoid green alga, secondary one absent lower cortex: absent lower surface: gelatinized, compressed hyhae attach the lichen directly to the substrate Ascomata: apothecial, lecanorine, sessile disc: flat in old ones becoming convex, occasionally concave epithymenium: yellow, orange to pale hymenium: hyaline; paraphyses: simple to slightly branched at the tips, very rarely anastomosing, apices clavate; hypothecium: colorless asci: clavate, with a well developed amyloid cap, Teloschistes-type, 8- spored ascospores: hyaline, simple or 1-septate, ellipsoid, with oil droplets Conidiomata: pycnidial, unilocular or plurilocular; conidiophores branched or pseudoparenchymatously arranged; conidiogenous cells: terminally or intercalary arranged, acrogenous or pleurogenous, with "bayonet-like" projections conidia: hyaline, simple, oblong Secondary metabolites: anthraquinone pigments Geography: worldwide with highest diversity in the Northern Hemisphere, mainly temperate Substrate: calcareous soil, sometimes overgrowing mosses and other lichens. Note: Fulgensia with simple or 1-septate spores differs from the Caloplaca with its polarilocular spores.