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DNA barcodes are increasingly being used for species identification amongst the lichenised fungi. This paper presents a dataset aiming to provide an authoritative DNA barcode sequence library for a wide array of Nordic lichens. We present 1324 DNA barcode sequences (nrITS) for 507 species in 175 genera and 25 orders. Thirty-eight species are new to GenBank and, for 25 additional species, ITS sequences are here presented for the first time. The dataset covers 20–21% of the Nordic lichenised species. Barcode gap analyses are given and discussed for the three genera Cladonia , Ramalina and Umbilicaria . The new combination Bryobilimbia fissuriseda (Poelt) Timdal, Marthinsen & Rui is proposed for Mycobilimbia fissuriseda and Nordic material of the species, currently referred to as Pseudocyphellaria crocata and Psoroma tenue ssp. boreale, are shown to belong in Pseudocyphellaria citrina and Psoroma cinnamomeum , respectively.

We have addressed phylogenetic relationships and tested hypotheses about five presumed subgroups among 15 species of Hypocenomyce s.l. (including Pycnora) by use of nuclear (ITS, LSU) and mitochondrial (SSU) ribosomal DNA‐regions. Bayesian, likelihood and parsimony phylogenetic analyses, of a dataset with broad Lecanoromycete taxon sampling, mostly support the five presumed subgroups, but two of these were found to be polyphyletic (the H. friesii‐group and Pycnora). The seven supported Hypocenomyce s.l. clades belong in different genera, families, orders and even subclasses, and represent a remarkable example of morphological and ecological convergence. Based on our molecular phylogenetic results, we split Hypocenomyce into four genera placed in two subclasses: (1) Carbonicola gen. nov. (Carbonicolaceae fam. nov., Lecanorales, Lecanoromycetidae; including C. anthracophila comb. nov., C. foveata comb. nov., and C. myrmecina comb. nov.); (2) Fulgidea gen. nov. (Umbilicariaceae, Umbilicariales, Umbilicariomycetidae subcl. nov.; including F. oligospora comb. nov. and F. sierrae comb. nov.); (3) Hypocenomyce (Ophioparmaceae, Umbilicariales; including H. australis, H. scalaris, and H. tinderryensis; and (4) Xylopsora gen. nov. (Umbilicariaceae; including X. caradocensis comb. nov. and X. friesii comb. nov.). We split Pycnora into two genera: (1) Pycnora (Pycnoraceae fam. nov., Candelariales, \"Candelariomycetidae\"; including P. praestabilis, P. sorophora, and P. xanthococca); and (2) Toensbergia gen. nov. (Sporastatiaceae fam. nov., unknown order, Lecanoromycetidae; including T. leucococca comb. nov.). We place Hypocenomyce isidiosa in Xylographa (Trapeliaceae, Baeomycetales, Ostropomycetidae; X. isidiosa comb. nov.). We place the family Ophioparmaceae in the Umbilicariales. Our type studies have shown that the epithet “myrmecina” should replace “castaneocinerea”, and lectotypes are chosen for Lecidea friesii Ach., L. scalaris var. myrmecina Ach., Psora cladonioides var. albocervina Räsänen, and P. cladonioides var. castaneocinerea Räsänen. Elixia cretica is reported as new to North America (from Mexico) and Australia.

Four species of Eschatogonia are recognized in Peru: E. angustiloba Timdal sp. nov., E. dissecta Timdal & R. Sant. sp. nov., E. minuta Timdal & R. Sant. sp. nov., and E. prolifera (Mont.) R. Sant. African and South American material of E. prolifera are shown to belong in two different chemical strains. Eschatogonia prolifera is new to Guinea, Peru and Suriname. A key to all six known species of the genus is given.

The fungal mitochondrial small subunit (mtSSU) ribosomal DNA is one of the most commonly used loci for phylogenetic analysis of lichen-forming fungi, but their primer specificity to mycobionts has not been evaluated. The current study aimed to design mycobiont-specific mtSSU primers and highlights their utility with an example from the saxicolous lichen-forming fungal genus Melanelia Essl. in Iceland. The study found a 12.5% success rate (3 out of 24 specimens with good-quality mycobiont mtSSU sequences) using universal primers (i.e. mrSSU1 and mrSSU3R), not including off-target amplification of environmental fungi, e.g. Cladophialophora carrionii and Lichenothelia convexa . New mycobiont-specific primers (mt-SSU-581-5’ and mt-SSU-1345-3’) were designed by targeting mycobiont-specific nucleotide sites in comparison with environmental fungal sequences, and assessed for mycobiont primer specificity using in silico PCR. The new mycobiont-specific mtSSU primers had a success rate of 91.7% (22 out of 24 specimens with good-quality mycobiont mtSSU sequences) on the studied Melanelia specimens. Additional testing confirmed the specificity and yielded amplicons from 79 specimens of other Parmeliaceae mycobiont lineages. This study highlights the effectiveness of designing mycobiont-specific primers for studies on lichen identification, barcoding and phylogenetics.

The Ramalinaceae is the fourth-largest family of lichenized ascomycetes with 42 genera and 913 species exhibiting considerable morphological variation. Historically, generic boundaries in the Ramalinaceae were primarily based on morphological characters. However, molecular systematic investigations of subgroups revealed that current taxonomy is at odds with evolutionary relationships. Tropical members of the family remain particularly understudied, including the large genus Phyllopsora. We have generated and collected multilocus sequence data (mtSSU, nrITS, nrLSU, RPB1, RPB2) for 149 species associated with the Ramalinaceae and present the first comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the family. We used ancestral state reconstructions on our molecular family phylogeny to trace the evolution of character states. Our results indicate that the Ramalinaceae have arisen from an ancestor with long, multiseptate ascospores living in humid temperate forests, and that the phyllopsoroid growth form has evolved multiple times within the family. Based on our results using integrative taxonomy, we discuss sister-relations and taxon-delimitation within five well-supported clades: The Bacidia, Biatora-, Ramalina-, Rolfidium-, and Toninia-groups. We reduce six genera into synonymy and make 49 new nomenclatural combinations. The genera Bacidia, Phyllopsora, Physcidia and Toninia are polyphyletic and herein split into segregates. We describe the two genera Bellicidia and Parallopsora and resurrect the genera Bibbya, Kiliasia, Sporacestra, and Thalloidima. According to our new circumscription, which also includes some additional changes, the family Ramalinaceae now comprises 39 genera.

Xylopsora canopeorum Timdal, Reese Næsborg & Bendiksby is described as a new species occupying the crowns of large Sequoia sempervirens trees in California, USA. The new species is supported by morphology, anatomy, secondary chemistry and DNA sequence data. While similar in external appearance to X. friesii , it is distinguished by forming smaller, partly coralloid squamules, by the occurrence of soralia and, in some specimens, by the presence of thamnolic acid in addition to friesiic acid in the thallus. Molecular phylogenetic results are based on nuclear (ITS and LSU) as well as mitochondrial (SSU) ribosomal DNA sequence alignments. Phylogenetic hypotheses obtained using Bayesian Inference, Maximum Likelihood and Maximum Parsimony all support X. canopeorum as a distinct evolutionary lineage belonging to the X. caradocensis – X. friesii clade.

Crustose lichen communities on rocks exhibit fascinating spatial mosaics resembling political maps of nations or municipalities. Although the establishment and development of biological populations are important themes in ecology, our understanding of the formation of such patterns on the rocks is still in its infancy. Here, we present a novel model of the concurrent growth, establishment and interaction of lichens. We introduce an inverse technique based on Monte Carlo simulations to test our model on field samples of lichen communities. We derive an expression for the time needed for a community to cover a surface and predict the historical spatial dynamics of field samples. Lichens are frequently used for dating the time of exposure of rocks in glacial deposits, lake retreats or rock falls. We suggest our method as a way to improve the dating.

Phyllopsora is a crustose to squamulose lichen genus inhabiting the bark of trees in moist tropical forests and rainforests. Species identification is generally challenging and is mainly based on ascospore morphology, thallus morphology and anatomy, vegetative dispersal units, and on secondary chemistry. While regional treatments of the genus have been conducted for Africa, South America and Australia, there exists no study focusing on the Asian and Melanesian species. Previously, 24 species of Phyllopsora s. str. have been reported from major national studies and checklists representing 13 countries. We have studied herbarium material of 625 Phyllopsora specimens from 18 countries using morphology, anatomy, secondary chemistry, and molecular data to investigate the diversity of Phyllopsora species in Asia and Melanesia. We report the occurrence of 28 species of Phyllopsora including the following three species described as new to science: P.sabahana from Malaysia, P.siamensis from Thailand and P.pseudocorallina from Asia and Africa. Eight species are reported as new to Asia. A key to the Asian and Melanesian species of Phyllopsora is provided.

Krogiaborneensis Kistenich & Timdal, K.isidiata Kistenich & Timdal and K.macrophylla Kistenich & Timdal are described as new species, the first from Borneo and the two latter from New Caledonia. The new species are supported by morphology, secondary chemistry and DNA sequence data. Krogiaborneensis and K.isidiata contain sekikaic and homosekikaic acid, both compounds reported here for the first time from the genus. Krogiamacrophylla contains an unknown compound apparently related to boninic acid as the major compound. DNA sequences (mtSSU and nrITS) are provided for the first time for Krogia and a phylogeny of the genus based on 15 accessions of five of the six accepted species is presented. Krogiaantillarum is reported as new to Brazil, Guatemala and Mexico.

Herein we describe the new species, Psora taurensis , from two localities in the Taurus Mountains in Turkey at ca. 1000 m altitude. Investigations of anatomy, secondary chemistry and DNA sequences (ITS and mtSSU) of P. taurensis and presumed close relatives suggest that P. taurensis is a distinct evolutionary lineage with P. tenuifolia as its sister, although it is morphologically more similar to P. russellii and P. vallesiaca .