Little known arctic-alpine epibryophytic lichen of siliceous rocks, recently found to belong to the family Sphaerophoraceae (Svensson & Fryday 2022). It is closely related to Gilbertaria squalescens, from which it differs in the less conspicuous, finely areolate thallus, even merging into a crust, less convex and more flat apothecia and longer ascospores. The two species were often confused in the past, but were neither compared nor considered relatives.
G. constristans is known from historical records from the 19th century from the Krkonoše Mts. In the catalogue of lichens (Vězda & Liška 1999, see Catinaria ‚constrictans‘), the name Catillaria sphaeralis is stated as its synonym. C. sphaeralis is a species described from the Sněžka Mt (Koerber 1861) and later found at the Velký kotel glacial cirque in the Krkonoše Mts (Stein 1872). However, it has been shown that the original type material contains both G. contristans and G. squalescens. For nomenclatural reasons, C. sphaeralis was recently lectotypified as corresponding to the species G. squalescens (Svensson & Fryday 2022).
Literature: Koerber G. W. (1861): Parerga Lichenologica. Ergänzungen zum Systema Lichenum Germaniae. – Trewendt, Breslau. Stein B. (1872): Nachträge von Flechtenflora Schlesiens II. – Jahresbericht der Schlesischen Gesellschaft für Vaterländische Kultur, Abt. Zool.-Bot., Breslau 49: 159–165. Svensson M. & Fryday A. M. (2022): Gilbertaria, a first crustose genus in the Sphaerophoraceae (Lecanoromycetes, Ascomycota) for Catillaria contristans, Toninia squalescens and related species. – Mycological Progress 21: 90.
taxonomic classification:Ascomycota → Lecanoromycetes → Lecanorales → Sphaerophoraceae → Gilbertaria
most frequented synonyms:Catillaria contristansAll records: 0, confirmed 0. One click on a selected square displays particular record(s), including their source(s).