Buellia cinnabarina U. Grube. (2004:169)

Ngangom, Roshinikumar, Nayaka, Sanjeeva, Mohabe, Satish & Reddy, A. Madhusudhana, 2025, New and interesting saxicolous species of Buellia De Not. (Caliciaceae, lichenized ascomycota) from India, Phytotaxa 681 (3), pp. 265-276 : 271

Buellia cinnabarina U. Grube. (2004:169)

Type:— AUSTRALIA. South Australia. Flinders Ranges National Park, Parachilna Gorge, 19 km W of Blinman, 31°07’S, 138°31’E, SW exposed rocks beside road, elev. 250 m, 7 April 1986, G. Rambold 5466 (holotype M [photo!])

( Fig. 4 )

Thallus saxicolous, crustose, thick, chalky white, epilithic, weakly rimose areolate, coarsely pruinose; prothallus visible as light brown margin around thallus, surface matt, ochraceous to grey, epruinose; medulla white, I–, containing calcium oxalate (H 2 SO 4 + forming clusters of transparent needle shaped crystals).

Apothecia lecideine, innate to subsessile with constricted base, 0.6–1.1 mm in diam.; disc covered with dense white pruina, plane, becoming strongly convex at maturity, margin distinct, reduced with age but persistent; exciple leptocline- type ( Bungartz et al. 2007), 60–90 µm wide, aeruginose pigments absent (K–, HNO 3 –), outermost layer dark brown, inside with light brown and bright red (eumitrin, K+ yellow solution in lower part of exciple) pigment; hymenium hyaline, not inspersed, 60–80 µm high; paraphyses simple to moderately branched, apically swollen, with brown pigment cap (cf. elachista brown), aeruginose pigment absent. Hypothecium dark brown, 60–80 μm high. Asci usually 8-spored, clavate, Bacidia- type. Ascospores 1-septate, brown at maturity, oblong to ellipsoid, not curved, Buellia - type, proper septum and spore wall thin, not thickening during spore ontogeny, ornamentation absent, (13.5–)15.5–17.4(–17.8) × (5.1–)5.4–6.1(–6.4) µm, l/w= (2.6–)2.7–3.1(–3.3) (n = 30).

Pycnidia rare, subimmersed, globose, pycnidial ontogeny similar to the Umbilicaria - type sensu Vobis & Hawksworth (1981), conidia simple, bacilliform (4–5 × 1–1.5 µm).

Chemistry: Spot tests: K+ yellow, P–, C–. Thallus UV –. TLC: atranorin (major), eumitrin (major), secalonic acid (minor).

Distribution: Buellia cinnabarina has only been reported for Australia ( McCarthy 2023).This is a new distributional record for India, collected from Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra, and found growing on siliceous rock.

Notes: This species can be distinguished from other saxicolous Buellia species in India by the presence of densely white pruinose apothecia, medulla rich in calcium oxalate and bright red pigment in exciple. The holotype of Buellia cinnabarina has slightly less pruina on the apothecial disc than the Indian specimens. Buellia cinnabarina is similar to B. hypostictella Elix & H. Mayrhofer (2016:10) in having a grey-white surface, a medulla containing calcium oxalate (H 2 SO 4 +) and pruinose apothecia, but the latter species differs in having a HNO 3 + violet outer exciple and containing hypostictic acid ( Elix & Mayrhofer 2016). The description provided here is based on Indian specimens which matches well with the protologue and the holotype photo of Buellia cinnabarina .

Specimens examined: INDIA. Maharashtra: Pune City, Chatushrungi Hill, on rock, elev. 560 m. 30 March 2005, S. Nayaka 05-001887( LWG). Himachal Pradesh: Parbati River Valley, on way to Pulga from Manikaran just before bridge on Parbati, on rock, elev. 1950 m. 18 June 1975, D.D. Awasthi & K. Dange 75095 ( LWG-LWU).

Figures

FIGURE 4. A. Thallus of Buellia cinnabarina. B. Apothecial anatomy showing red pigment at exciple C. Ascospores. Scale bars. A. 2 mm, B. 100 µm, C. 20 µm.