Yellow Cobblestone Lichen
(Acarospora socialis)
Conservation • Description • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status |
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| IUCN Red List | not listed |
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| NatureServe | GNR - Unranked |
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| Minnesota | not listed |
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Description |
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The vegetative body (thallus) is up to 4″ wide and somewhat variable in form (squamulose). It may be crusty (crusticose), in such close contact with the rock surface (substrate) that it appears sprayed on like paint; more or less leaf-like (foliose), with thin, flat, lobes that are free from the substrate; or cracked (areolate), broken up into pieces (areoles), appearing somewhat like cracked paint, that can be individually removed from the substrate. The areoles may be round or somewhat polygonal, and may form lobes. The upper surface of the thallus is usually bright yellow or greenish-yellow when fresh but may be bleached white with age. The spore-producing body (apothecia) are tiny, about 1 ⁄32″ (1 mm) in diameter, and have reddish-brown, concave disks. |
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Similar Species |
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Ecology |
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Substrate |
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Rock |
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Growth Form |
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Crusticose |
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Habitat |
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On sandstone and on granite rocks or outcrops; rarely on soil |
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Hosts |
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Distribution |
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Sources |
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| 11/17/2022 | ||||
Occurrence |
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Yellow Cobblestone Lichen is very common in southwestern United States. It is the most common yellow member of its genus in the southwest, and one of the most common lichens of any kind in the deserts of Arizona and southern California. It is rare in Minnesota. |
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Taxonomy |
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| Kingdom | Fungi (fungi) | ||
| Subkingdom | Dikarya | ||
| Division | Ascomycota (sac fungi) | ||
| Subdivision | Pezizomycotina | ||
| Class | Lecanoromycetes (common lichens) | ||
| Subclass | Acarosporomycetidae | ||
| Order | Acarosporales | ||
| Family | Acarosporaceae | ||
| Genus | Acarospora (cobblestone lichens) | ||
| Mycobiont | Acarospora socialis | ||
| Photobiont | |||
Synonyms |
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Common Names |
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Bright Cobblestone Lichen Cracked Lichen Gold Cobblestone Lichen Yellow Cobblestone Lichen |
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Glossary
Apothecia
An open, disk-shaped or cup-shaped, reproductive structure, with spore sacs on the upper surface, that produces spores for the fungal partner of a lichen.
Areole
On plants: A woolly, hairy, or cushion-like structure, unique to cacti, from which arise spines or glochids. On lichens: a small, irregular patch of thallus.
Crusticose
Crusty; referring to lichens in such close contact with the rock surface (substrate) that it appears sprayed on like paint.
Foliose
Leaf-like; referring to lichens with thin, flat, leaf-like growths divided into lobes which are free from the substrate.
Substrate
The surface on which a lichen grows.
Thallus
The vegetative body of a lichen composed of both the alga and the fungus.
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Slideshows |
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| Acarospora socialis - fungi kingdom Fungi Kingdom |
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About
Published on Jan 23, 2015 Acarospora socialis - fungi kingdom |
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| Acarospora socialis Top #10 Facts Rishika Janaki |
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About
Published on Jan 31, 2016 |
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