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Caloplaca indica, a New Lichenized Ascomycetes (Teloschistaceae)
from Eastern Himalaya, India
Yogesh Joshi •T. A. M. Jagadeesh Ram •
P. Singh •G. P. Sinha
Received: 23 August 2013 / Revised: 17 December 2013 / Accepted: 31 December 2013 / Published online: 12 November 2014
ÓThe National Academy of Sciences, India 2014
Abstract Caloplaca indica, a new species is described
from the Eastern Himalaya, India. It is discovered from the
states of Arunachal Pradesh and West Bengal. It is char-
acterized by the greyish UV?orange thallus, biatorine to
lecanorine apothecia, amphithecium with pale brown
crystals and three locular ascospores.
Keywords Arunachal Pradesh Lichenized fungi
New species Plurilocular Teloschistales West Bengal
There are several characters to classify lichen genus Cal-
oplaca Th. Fr., but the most important is the presence of
polarilocular ascospores (two locules connected by an
isthmus) which separates it from closely related genera,
such as Brigantiaea Trevis., Ionapsis Th. Fr. and Letrouitia
Hafellner & Bellem. These types of ascospores were first
described by de Notaris [1]. However, there are some
exceptions reported within this genus, i.e. there is a group
of species which bears plurilocular ascospores (3–6 lo-
cules) and is placed under Caloplaca section Trio-
phthalmidium by Mu
¨ller [2]. This section is characterized
by crustaceous thallus with both thallus and apothecia of
different colour, apothecia with or without a thalline mar-
gin, hypothecium subtended by an algal layer and as-
cospores 3–5 septate. The members of this section are
widespread in tropical and subtropical regions of the world
and are mostly corticolous, rarely saxicolous.
Hafellner and Poelt [3] monographed this section and
reported 17 species and one subspecies. Wetmore descri-
bed one new pluriclocular species of Caloplaca from
Mexico (C. lagunensis Wetmore) [4]. Recently, Joshi et al.
reported three species of this section from India of which
C. jatolensis Y. Joshi & Upreti was new to science whereas
C. crocea (Kremp.) Hafellner & Poelt was new to Indian
lichen flora [5], hence increasing the tally to 19 species.
The present paper is in continuation towards taxonomic
revision of this genus from India and reports one more new
species belonging to this section from India, thus increas-
ing the tally to 20 across the globe. Detailed taxonomic
description for the species is provided along with chemical
and ecological data.
The study is based on lichen specimens lodged in her-
barium of Botanical Survey of India, Central Regional
Centre, Allahabad (BSA). Specimens have been examined
using standard microscopical techniques and were hand-
sectioned under Digi-Zoom binocular. All measurements
were made on material mounted in water and lactophenol
cotton blue (LCB) was used only as a stain. Spot test
reactions were carried out on hand sections of thalli and
apothecia under Nikon Eclipse 400 compound microscope.
Secondary metabolites were identified by TLC as described
by Orange et al. using solvent system C [6].
Caloplaca indica Y. Joshi, Jagadeesh & G.P. Sinha sp.
nov. Fig. 1a–f.
MycoBank no.: MB 807004.
Differs from Caloplaca jatolensis in having larger as-
cospores [(20–)22–23(–25) 9(13–)14–16(–18) lm].
Y. Joshi (&)
Lichenology Division, Department of Botany, Kumaun
University, S.S.J. Campus, Almora 263601, Uttarakhand, India
e-mail: dryogeshcalo@gmail.com
T. A. M. Jagadeesh Ram
Botanical Survey of India, Andaman and Nicobar Regional
Centre, Port Blair 744102, India
P. Singh G. P. Sinha
Botanical Survey of India, Central Regional Centre, Allahabad
211002, India
123
Natl. Acad. Sci. Lett. (November–December 2014) 37(6):517–519
DOI 10.1007/s40009-014-0270-3
Type: India: West Bengal, Darjeeling district, Kalimpong,
Neora Valley National Park, Aloobari, N27°07025.900
E88°43005.700, alt. 2,454 m, on bark, 15 May 2010, T.A.M.
Jagadeesh Ram 6135 (Holotype—BSA; Isotype—LWG-6135).
Etymology: The specific epithet refers to its occurrence
in Indian subcontinent.
Description:Thallus crustose, corticolous, (21–)23–25
(–29) lm thick, smooth, shiny, continuous to cracked
areolate, indeterminate, effuse, covering a large area,
whitish grey to pale grey. Cortex thin, paraplectenchyma-
tous, made up of thin-walled cells. Photobiont layer con-
tinuous. Medulla loose, prosoplectenchymatous, white.
Hypothallus ±present, forming a black line at borders.
Apothecia biatorine to lecanorine, numerous, scattered
to ±clumped, button-like, sessile to ±constricted at the
base, round, 04–10 mm diam.; disc brownish red, plane;
proper margin thin, 02–03 mm, flush to raised above the
level of disc, concolorous or slightly darker than disc;
thalline margin thin, 01 mm, smooth to crenulate, conco-
lorous with thallus. Epihymenium golden to golden-brown,
(18–)20–23(–27) lm high, with dense granular epipsamma,
K–; hymenium hyaline, (77–)85–99(–110) lm high; hy-
pothecium hyaline, made up of isodiametric cells, oil
droplets ±present; parathecium of elongated cells and
without crystals, (22–)25–27(–30) lm thick; amphithecium
with or without algal cells, (80–)90–100(–115) lm thick,
Fig. 1 a Habit of Caloplaca
indica (holotype)
(Scale =5 mm);
bAmphithecium with algal
cells (Scale =35 lm);
cAmphithecium without algal
cells (Scale =35 lm);
dBilocular and trilocular
ascospores (Scale 28 lm);
eAscospores within asci
(Scale =25 lm); fand
gAscospores (Scale 22 and
2.3 lm)
518 Y. Joshi et al.
123
outer surface with light brown crystals that dissolve in K.
Paraphyses thin, anastomosed to ±branched, with upper
2–4 cells swollen and with pale brown epipsamma. Asci
8-spored. Ascospores hyaline, bi to trilocular [of C. ho-
mologa type (Hafellner and Poelt 1979)], slightly con-
stricted in the centre, all locules of ±equal size, (20–)
22–23(–25) 9(13–)14–16(–18) lm. Pycnidia not seen.
Chemistry: Thallus K–, C–, KC–, Pd–, UV ?yellow-
orange. Apothecial disc K–, C–, KC–, Pd–. TLC: parietin
in traces.
Ecology and distribution: The species is reported so far
only from Eastern Himalaya where it grows on trees in the
montane rainforests between elevations of 2,306–2,454 m.
It was found on a secondary forest in the type locality (hilly
slopes) and the associated species include Cryptothecia
stirtonii A.L. Sm., Arthopyrenia majuscula (Nyl.) Zahlbr.,
Bacidia rubella (Hoffm.) A. Massal., Lecanora albella
(Pers.) Ach., Heterodermia diademata (Taylor) D.D. A-
wasthi and Parmelaria thomsonii (Stirt.) D.D. Awasthi.
Comments: The new taxon is mainly characterized by
the greyish UV?orange thallus, biatorine to lecanorine
apothecia, bi to trilocular ascospores, and an amphithecium
with pale brown crystals confined in the upper region. In its
ascospore morphology, the new taxon resembles Caloplaca
ochracea, Caloplaca crocea and C. triloculans. Caloplaca
ochracea, a UV—pecies differs in having four locular as-
cospores. C. crocea aUV?orange species differs from the
new taxon in having yellow to yellowish orange apothecial
disc, crystals in amphithecium, thick thalline margin,
smaller spores (16–18 98–10 lm) and restricted distri-
bution in South India where it is reported at an elevation of
1,100 m. C. triloculans another UV?orange species dif-
fers in having crystals in amphithecium, thick thalline
margin, branched paraphyses, little bit narrower spores
(10–12 lm wide) and hypothecium lacking oil droplets.
Caloplaca jatolensis Y. Joshi and Upreti, another UV?
species from temperate regions of Western Himalaya
differs from the new taxon in having smaller and narrower
distinctly trilocular ascospores [(17 2–)18–20(–21) 9(8
5–)9–11(–12) lm].
Variations: The species shows a lot of variation within
itself. Specimens with apothecia having proper margin
have simple to polarilocular to trilocular ascospores, am-
phithecium devoid of algae, and crystals extending up to
the middle of the amphithecium. While specimens with
apothecia having thalline margin have distinct trilocular
ascospores and also the amphithecium is having algae and
crystals reside among the upper surface and do not extend
up to the base.
Additional specimen examined: INDIA: Arunachal Pra-
desh, West Kameng, 15 km to Sange, Doran Sange road,
2,306–2,344 m, on bark, 05 March 2009, K.P. Singh & G.
Swarnalatha 4979 (BSA).
Acknowledgments The authors (TAMJR, GPS and PS) thank
Director, Botanical Survey of India for facilities and grateful to
Ministry of Environment & Forests, New Delhi for financial assis-
tance under AICOPTAX scheme. One of the authors (YJ) would like
to thank Head, Department of Botany, S.S.J. Campus, Kumaun
University, Almora for providing laboratory facilities.
References
1. de Notaris G (1847) Nuovi caratteri di alcuni generi della tribu
delle Parmeliacee ed osservazioni sulla classificazione dei licheni.
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˘m Acad Roy Sci (Turin) 10:365–389
2. Mu
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¨ge 14. Flora 64:88
3. Hafellner J, Poelt J (1979) Die Arten der Gattung Caloplaca mit
plurilocularen Sporen (Meroplacis, Triophthalmidium, Xanthocar-
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4. Wetmore CM (1999) Four new species of Caloplaca from Mexico.
Bryologist 102(1):99–103
5. Joshi Y, Upreti DK, Sati SC (2008) Three new Caloplaca species
from India. Lichenologist 40(6):535–541
6. Orange A, James PW, White FJ (2001) Microchemical methods
for the identification of lichens. British Lichen Society, London
Caloplaca indica, a New Lichenized Ascomycetes (Teloschistaceae) 519
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