Japewia tornoensis and further localities of J. subaurifera found in the Carpathians

Czarnota P.: Japewia tornoensis and further localities of J. subaurifera found in the Carpathians . acta Mycol. 44 (2): 259–264, 2009. Japewia tornoensis is reported for the first time from the Carpathians and Poland. Further localities of J. subaurifera , known so far from a single Carpathian collection in the Polish tatra Mts., are also presented. Some diagnostic features and general distribution of both species are provided and similar taxa are discussed.


MaterIaL anD MethoDS
the material was examined with light microscopes.hand-made apothecial sections and squashed thallus preparations, were studied in water and potassium hydroxide solution (K).Collections of J. subaurifera were compared with other Polish materials checked previously by B. J. Coppins (UK). the material is stored in the herbarium of the Gorce national Park (GPn).the nomenclature follows Index Fungorum (http://indexfungorum.org;date of exploration: July 2009) and Liška et al. (2008).
Morphology and affinities.Descriptions and illustrations of the species are given for example by tønsberg (1990) and ohmura & Kashiwadani (1997).all collections presented here correspond well with those descriptions and tatra's specimens determined previously by Coppins (Czarnota, Kukwa 2004).they are only sterile as most european findings forming brown-yellow, orange-brown to yellowish green soralia (Fig. 1).Because of similarly coloured soralia J. subaurifera resembles Lecidea pullata (norman) th.Fr. and Caloplaca lucifuga thor.It is especially similar to the first species which covers often the same substrates being common in upper montane belt in Carpathians.the second one grows mainly on deciduous trees, particularly often in crevices of rough bark of old Quercus spp., rather in lowland woodlands than in mountains.each of them differ in the chemistry since J. subaurifera produces lobaric acid and several 'subaurifera' pigments, L. pullata spaerophorin and isosphaeric acid, while C. lucifuga has parietin and fallacinal (tønsberg 1992; wirth 1995).From those reasons the orange-brown soralia of the last species react K+ red-violet in contrast to K+ fuscous brown soralia of J. subaurifera (visible in a squash preparation).Soralia of L. pullata give no reaction with K or they are only K ± yellowish.
World distribution.J. subaurifera is a widespread lichenized fungus reported mainly from the zone of boreal forests in the northern hemisphere.It is especially frequent in Scandinavia; particularly in norway and Sweden (tønsberg 1990).From other european sites, including Scotland, Iceland, Komi republic in russia, estonia and mountainous areas of Portugal, the Czech republic (Šumava, České Švýcarsko, eastern Sudetes), austria and turkey it is known from sparse localities (Boom van den, Giralt 1996;Kristinsson 1999;Palice 1999;halonen et al. 2000;tønsberg et al. 2001;Czarnota, Kukwa 2004;halda 2006).J. subaurifera seems to be also widespread throughout boreal zone of north america (tønsberg 1990, 1992;McCune et al. 2000;hauck et al. 2006); its locally frequent occurrence on Japan island hokkaido is also known (ohmura, Kashiwadani 1997).Up to date the single locality from Polish tatra Mts. was considered as only one in whole Carpathians (Czarnota, Kukwa 2004).the new findings presented here extend its occurrence on other ranges of western Carpathians.

Morphology and affinities.
Considering similar lichens growing in the upper montane belts of western Carpathians, J. tornoensis at first sight resembles paler (shaded) forms of Strangospora moriformis (ach.)Stein by semiglobose, immarginate, brown to dull brown apothecia (Fig. 2).Mature apothecia of Lecanora phaeostigma with reduced excipulum are also very similar to those formed by J. tornoensis (Fig. 3).Growing closely to the both species, J. tornoensis could easily be overlooked thus its real distribution in the Carpathians seems to be wider than we currently known.Its distinguishing from the letter species is quite simple by anatomic characters, mainly by distinct differences in ascus shape and strongly thickened spores (walls 1.5-3µm), which are large (15-20 × 10-15µm) and additionally coated by thick gelatinous epispore (Figs 4,5).L. phaeostigma has much smaller, ellipsoid and thin-walled spores and moreover very often visible numerous brown black pycnidia.S. moriformis forms globose, small ascospores and multispored asci.For more details see for example tønsberg (1990) andhawksworth &Coppins (1992).
Ecology.except antarctica and oceanic parts of europe, where J. tornoensis has been found on terricolous bryophytes and humus in rock crevices (hawksworth, Coppins 1992;olech 2004), almost all its inland reports are made in subalpine belts covered with conifer forest.It was collected there mainly as an epiphyte on, e.g., Larix decidua, Pseudotsuga manziesii, Picea engelmannii, Abies lasiocarpa and rarely on wood.
Studies of hauck and Spribille (2005) in spruce-fir forests of northwestern Montana suggest that J. tornoensis principally occupies branches of conifer trees.Perhaps the species prefers the same kind of habitat also in the Carpathians, as would indicate the finding presented here.