Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2007. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 3.

Thallus: small, up to 3 cm wide, granulose to irregularly crustose-areolate areoles: 0.06-0.25(-0.3) mm wide, 0.1-0.2 mm thick, flat to slightly convex, homoiomerous, densely reticulate to paraplectenchymatous, with short, ±round to angulate or slightly elongated mycobiont cells 3-7.5 x 2.5-3 µm; photobiont cells: ±round, single or in pairs, 5-7.5 µm without gelatinous sheath, 7.5-12.5 µm with gelatinous sheath upper surface: black, dull, rough lower surface: concolorous with upper surface, attached by rhizohyphae, sometimes gelatinous basal layer present Apothecia: thallinocarpous, usually abundant, but finally filling the entire thallus areoles and hence inconspicuous, 1(-2) per areole, immersed to semi-immersed, 0.12-0.25(-0.3) mm wide, ±round, usually slightly convex, rarely more distinctly convex or with depressed center disc: rough, indistinguishable from sterile areole; margin: thalline, indistinct, not prominent, c. 50 µm wide; proper exciple: absent hymenium: hyaline, ±continuous, not separated into partial hymenia, but packets of sterile thallus tissue may intrude between the asci, 155-200 µm wide, 70-80 µm tall, IKI+ blue rapidly turning reddish brown; subhymenium: hyaline, IKI+ blue turning reddish brown ascus: 16-24(-32)-spored ascospores: hyaline, simple, broad ellipsoid, small, 5-7.5 x 2.5-4 µm Pycnidia: not observed conidia: not observed Spot tests: all negative Secondary products: none detected. Substrate and ecology: on siliceous rock and caliche at mid-elevations World distribution: North America, southern and southeastern Europe, and Mongolia Sonoran distribution: central to northern Arizona. Notes: Lichinella myriospora is the only truly crustose species of the genus present in the study area and has a small-celled paraplectenchymatous thallus anatomy. Therefore, it resembles Psorotichia, Lemmopsis, and Porocyphus. It is distinguished by the polysporous asci and the thallinocarpous type of fruiting body.