Journal of Threatened
Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 February 2023 | 15(2): 22764–22766
ISSN 0974-7907
(Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8303.15.2.22764-22766
#8303 | Received 04
December 2022 | Final received 13 January 2023 | Finally accepted 10 February
2023
New record of an usneoied lichen Usnea hirta (L.) Weber ex F.H.Wigg. from India
K.S. Vinayaka 1,
Archana R. Mesta 2 & N.
Rajeshwari 3
1 Department of Botany, Shri
Venkataraman Swamy College, Vidyagiri, Bantwala, Dakshina Kannad, Karnataka 574211, India.
2,3 Department of Botany, Sahyadri
Science College, Shimoga, Karnataka 577201,
India.
1 ks.vinayaka@gmail.com
(corresponding author), 2 archu.mesta@gmail.com, 3 rajeshwaribabu02@gmail.com
Editor: Anonymity
requested. Date of
publication: 26 February 2023 (online & print)
Citation: Vinayaka, K.S., Archana R. Mesta
& N. Rajeshwari (2023). New
record of an usneoied lichen Usnea
hirta (L.) Weber ex F.H.Wigg.
from India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 15(2): 22764–22766. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8303.15.2.22764-22766
Copyright: © Vinayaka et al. 2023. Creative Commons Attribution
4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: None.
Competing interests: The authors
declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: We are thankful to management
and principal of SVS College, Bantwal and Sahyadri
Science College Shimoga for providing the facilities.
We also thankful to Karnataka Forest Department for permission and Dr. S. Nayaka, NBRI for encouragement to carry out the
study.
Lichens are the first members of
the barren rocky regions to colonize and are good forest health indicators in
the tropical forest regions of the world. Western Himalaya and Western Ghats
are lichen hotspots in the country (Upreti et al.
2005). Usnea is one the largest fruticose
genera of lichen forming fungi around the world within the family Parmeliaceae (Lucking et al. 2016). The genus Usnea is widely distributed in tropical and
subtropical regions of the world (Stevens 2004; Clerc
2006; Galloway 2007; Hinds & Hinds 2007; Herrera 2016; Ohmura et al. 2017).
Among the usneoid lichens, the genus Usnea was segregated into five subgenera (Motyka 1938). About 300 Usnea
species were reported from all over the world Ohmura (2012) and 57 species
are known from India (Shukla et al. 2014). Usnea
species which are primarily saxicolous have restricted distribution patterns
compared to corticolous species (Clerc
& Herrera-Campos 1997). The genus Usnea
can be described by fruticose thallus with cartilaginous central axis. The
species of Usnea are differentiated on
the basis of pigmentation on cortex and medulla, branching types, density of
branches, and different morphological parts.
The present study is based on the
lichens collected from different parts of Karnataka during 2008–2020. The
lichens were collected from different altitudes and all types of substrata such
as barks, twigs, and rocks. The collected samples were taken to the laboratory,
air dried, and stored in the lichen herbarium of Kumadvathi
First Grade College and Sri Venkataramana Swamy
College, Karnataka. The voucher specimen was submitted to NBRI, Lucknow (LWG).
Ecological parameters such as temperature, humidity, altitude, latitude were
noted at the place of collection. The morphological characters were noted down.
The anatomical characters studied with the help of binocular microscope. The
chemical tests (K, C, KC, P, I test, and TLC in solvent system A) were carried
out to identify the secondary metabolites present in it (White & James
1985; Orange 2001). The pH of the bark was estimated by the procedure of Kricke (2002) using digital pH meter (Multi-Parameter PTTestrTM 35 Oakton, USA). The identification of Usnea was done on the basis of morphological,
anatomical, and chemical characters (Awasthi 2007; Ohmura 2012).
Usnea hirta (L.) F.H.Wigg.
Collection: Karnataka, Chikkamagaluru,Mullayanagiri (13.64330N &
73.98400E) on the twigs of Hypericum mysurense
at an altitude of 1,780m. Average temperature is 24°C and humidity 90–92%.
Voucher No: LHKFGC0015
Description: Thallus fruticose, corticolous, branching sympodial, main branches stiff,
segments terete to strongly ridged, thallus erect and shrubby, 5–7cm long,
light to dark brown in color, absence of papillae, cortex single layered,
central axis solid, pseudocyphellae and soredia absent, isidia present, apothecia not found.
Ecology: Ramicolous,
collected from the shola forests of Mullayanagiri on
the twigs of Hypericum mysurense with smooth
bark with pH 6.36±0.3
Chemistry (Colour
Test): Medulla K-, P-, I-, C-, KC-
Chemicals: Norstictic
acid, usnic acid, and murolic
acid
Distribution: Europe, North America (South
California, Arizona), Philippines, Australia, eastern Africa, India (Western
Ghats).
Differences with other Usnea species
|
Papillae |
Isidia |
Apothecia |
Medulla |
Secondary
metabolites |
U. hirta |
- |
+ |
Not found |
Dense |
Usnic acid and norstictic acid |
U. ghattensis |
+ |
- |
Terminal |
Loose |
Only usnic acid |
Key to Usnea species of Karnataka
1. Central
axis solid ……........................................................... 2
2. a.
Thallus dichotomously branched up to the apices..........3
b. Thallus sympodially
branched ...................................... 4
3. Thallus
surface with anuular, irregular cracks and dot like
to linear pseudocyphellae ......................................
U. rigidula
4.
Branching sympodial or subsympodial, with secondary
branches, thallus erect bushy ................................................
5
5. a.
Thallus with pseudocyphellae
....................................... 6
b. Thallus lacking pseudocyphellae
and red pigment absent ..................................................................................
10
6. a.
Thallus pseudocyphellate, isidiate
but lacking soredia ... 7
b. Thallus pseudocyphellate
lacking both soredia and isidia. 9
7. Cortex
single layered and much branched ........................... 8
8. a. Thallus surface tuberculate, lacking papillae, five different
chemical strains present ......................................... U. undulata
b. Central axis thick, medulla compact and
thin ......... U. hirta
9. Cortex
single layered, lacking tubercles, medulla K-, thallus stiff, lateral branches
dense, apically blackish ....... U. ghattensis
10. a.
Thallus with apothecia ................................................. 11
b. Thallus lacking apothecia
.............................................. 16
11. Lacking
soredia and isidia, cortex single layered ............. 12
12. a.
Thallus surface papillate and tuberculate .................... 13
b. Thallus surface lacking papilla and tubercule ................ 14
13. Thallus
yellow to yellowish brown, branches somewhat inflated, medulla K+ red
......................................... U. orientalis
14. Thallus
large, not sub subcoralloid, central axis circular in
cross section
.......................................................................... 15
15. Lateral
spinules and fibrils rigid, dense, ± uniform in
length ..............................................................................
U. luridorufa
16. Medulla
K+ red (norstictic/salazinic
acid) ....................... 17
17. Thallus
both isidiate and sorediate,
inflated in apical region, smooth to maculate, stictic
acid complex in medulla .................................. U. leucospilodea
For figure &
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