Thompson, J., 1997. American Arctic Lichens: The Microlichens.
Thallus lacking or reduced to a few scattered areolae, varying to a chinky white thallus. Apothecia small, to 0.5-0.8 mm broad, black, shining, epruinose, with slightly convex, umbo-free disk, marginate only when young; exciple exterior brown-black, interior reddish to slightly wine-red; hypothecium brown-black, reddened with K; epithecium very blue-green, grading into hymenium; hymenium 50-70 µm, light blue-green to nearly hyaline; paraphyses weakly conglutinate, easily separable in water, simple, seldom bifurcate branching and anastomosing, lower part to 2 µm, upper part swollen and bead-like, to 5—8(—10) µm; asci subcylindrical; spores uniseriate to biseriate, ellipsoid, not halonate, 6-11 X 4-6.5 µm. Conidia 3-5 X 1 µm.
This species grows on calcareous rocks and pebbles in the open. It is known as circumpolar arctic and is found in the Alps. In North America it appears to be high arctic, occurring in the arctic islands and in Greenland.