Endocarpon riparium
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| Endocarpon riparium | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Eurotiomycetes |
| Order: | Verrucariales |
| Family: | Verrucariaceae |
| Genus: | Endocarpon |
| Species: | E. riparium |
| Binomial name | |
| Endocarpon riparium Aptroot & M.Cáceres (2016) | |
 Holotype: Amapá National Forest, Brazil | |
Endocarpon riparium is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling) squamulose lichen in the family Verrucariaceae.[1] This lichen was discovered growing near rivers in the Brazilian Amazon, where it forms patches on wood, tree bark, and rocks that are sometimes underwater. It reproduces by producing small detachable pieces along its edges rather than through typical spore-bearing structures, making it unusual among related species.
Endocarpon riparium was described as new to science in 2016 by André Aptroot and Marcela da Silva Cáceres from material collected in the Amapá National Forest (eastern Brazilian Amazon). The holotype was gathered near the field station at about 30 m elevation, on wood in disturbed forest; paratypes came from nearby primary tall forest on tree bark (including occasionally submerged bark) and on siliceous rock. The specific epithet refers to its riparian habitat. The authors placed the species in Endocarpon based on the cortex structure, even though no ascomata were found, and noted that it is the first Endocarpon species described with obvious asexual propagules.[2]