Lecidea streveleri
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| Lecidea streveleri | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
| Order: | Lecideales |
| Family: | Lecideaceae |
| Genus: | Lecidea |
| Species: | L. streveleri |
| Binomial name | |
| Lecidea streveleri T.Sprib. (2020) | |
Lecidea streveleri is a species of crustose lichen in the family Lecideaceae.[1] It is found in Canada and the United States. The lichen grows on the bark of alder and balsam poplar. It is known to occur in Alaska as well as Haida Gwaii, British Columbia.[2] This lichen forms thin, smooth patches 0.5–4 cm across with a finely cracked surface that appears mottled when wet, and produces small brown, disk-shaped fruiting bodies with persistent black rims.
The lichen was described as a new species in 2020 by lichenologist Toby Spribille. The type specimen was collected in the Hoonah–Angoon Census Area of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (Alaska). Here it was on steep slopes in a basin on the west side of Dundas Bay, growing on the bark of an alder tree. The specific epithet streveleri honors Gregory P. Streveler, who, according to Spribille, is "an extraordinary naturalist and polymath, and author of numerous scientific papers, who has dedicated much of his life to understanding the natural history of Glacier Bay".[2]
Lecidea streveleri was provisionally placed in the genus Lecidea despite molecular evidence suggesting it belongs to the family Malmideaceae rather than Lecideaceae. Phylogenetic analysis of the closely related L. albofuscescens revealed that this species group clusters within Malmideaceae alongside genera such as Malmidea, Cheiromycina, and Puttea, rather than with typical Lecidea species in Lecideaceae. However, the authors chose not to establish a new genus or transfer the species to an existing Malmideaceae genus, as all currently recognised genera in that family are morphologically distinct and adding L. streveleri would problematically expand their morphological definitions. Following precedent in lichen taxonomy, the species was provisionally retained in Lecidea pending a more comprehensive phylogenetic revision of Malmideaceae, which remains poorly understood taxonomically.[2] This approach mirrors similar cases where morphologically distinctive species have been temporarily housed in established genera while awaiting family-level taxonomic clarification.[3]