Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2004. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 2.
Thallus: crustose, areolate; prothallus: very inconspicuous areoles: contiguous or dispersed, flat to slightly convex, appressed, +round to irregular in outline, 0.3-1 mm in diam., 0.2-0.4 mm thick surface: pale whitish ochre to very pale brown or (olive-)gray, esorediate medulla: white, I- Apothecia: black, with a slightly constricted base, 0.5-0.7(-1.4) mm in diam. disc: black, flat to moderately convex, dull, epruinose or sometimes weakly pruinose margin: black, usually persistent for a long time, eventually vanishing, thin, dull to shiny, rarely dark brown at the side towards the thallus exciple: with a greenish black or brownish black, epihymenium-like rim, unpigmented inside but ochre-opaque due to inspersion of crystalline masses (gyrophoric acid) epihymenium: pale to dark gray-green, c. 10 µm thick hymenium: hyaline, (50-)65-75(-85) µm tall, I+ blue; paraphyses: simple, sometimes branched and anastomosing subhymenium: hyaline, (15-)25-30(-40) µm thick hypothecium: dark brown to almost black asci: clavate, 50-70 x 10-16 µm, 8-spored ascospores: hyaline, simple, ellipsoid, (6-)914(-16) x (4.5-)5-7(-8) µm, length-width-index: 1.9-2.4 Pycnidia: immersed conidia: cylindrical, 7-12 x c. 1 µm Spot tests: cortex and medulla K-, C+ red, KC+ red, P- Secondary metabolites: gyrophoric acid syndrome. Substrate and ecology: on acid rocks or agglutinated sandy soil World distribution: arid and semi-arid areas in Australia (other reports in need of verification) Sonoran distribution: rarely in Baja California. Notes: This subgenus comprises species of temperate and cool, mostly humid climates with relatively long conidia and (in freshly collected material too) I+ blue hymenium (see Rambold 1989). The name Rehmiopsis means "similar to Rehmia" [Rehmia Kremp. = Rhizocarpon] and Möller-Argoviensis described Patellaria heterodoxa as similar to Rehmia coeruleoalba in gross morphology]. Lecidea ochroleuca is a member of the difficult Lecidea fuscoatra complex with a still insufficiently understood circumscription. In Australia Rambold (1989) noted that it colonizes mainly sandy soil and frequently occurs on termite mounds. The epithet "ochroleucus" (Greek: ochroleukos = yellowish-white) refers to the thallus color.