Lynge B 1926. Lichens from Bear Island (Bjornoya). Resultater av de Norske Statsunderstottede Spitsbergenekspeditioner 1: 1-78.
Sørhamna, to quartz rocks (TH. FR.).
Thallus almost disappearing, small maculae dark or formed from inconspicuous lines of quartz granules.
Apothecia closely appressed, minute: diam. 0.2-0.3 mm. Disc black, plane, epruinose, encircled by concolourous, entire, persistent, swollen or thereafter thin margin. Excipulum and hypothecium completely hyaline; upper hymenium gray-grayish-brown/blackish brown (not blue), narrow: 40-50 µ tall, covered by colourless amorphous layer. Paraphyses grown together, robust, apices clavate-thickened and (with the addition of KOH) septate-constricted. Asci broadly pyriform, e.g. 32 X 16 µ, 8-spored. Spores ellipsoid, small: 9-11 (13) X 4.5-6 (6.5) µ.
Pycnidia not seen.
Medulla I and KOH unchanged; hyeminum I intensely and persistently blue.
It is so inconspicuous that in the field it would have escaped the attention of every common lichenologist, it is hardly visible without a lens. I refer it to the section Lecideae sylvicolae of TH. M. FRIES Lich. Scand. II p. 555. This section contains a rather heterogeneous number of Lecideae with small apothecia and (generally) small spores, but the internal structure of the apothecia varies much. This species much resembles Lecidea conferenda NYL., but that is only habitually, for Lecidea conferenda has a quite different texture of the apothecia: very dark excipulum and hypothecium, blue colour of the hymenium, narrower spores: 9-13 X 3-4 µ, and another reaction of the hymenium (wine-red with Iodine).
At Sørhamna the ground is calcareous, probably this lichen has been found on an erratic stone.