Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2007. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 3.
Thallus: forming medium-sized rosettes or cushions 10-15(-20) mm wide, initially with flat squamules and lobulate margin, soon becoming divided into erect adpressed or ascending lobes forming foliose-fruticose cushions lobes: 2-4 mm wide with narrow base, flat to convex, with rounded tips with down curved margin, 400-800 µm thick, heteromerous, centrally with loose hyphal strand lacking photobiont cells and 100-500 µm thick, reticulate towards the lobe periphery, 50-110 µm thick upper surface: black, sometimes grayish pruinose, usually smooth, sometimes becoming uneven or granulose lower surface: concolorous with the upper surface, dull, attached by central umbilicus Apothecia: thallinocarpous, marginal to submarginal, immersed and filling the entire lobe tip or ±sessile, 2-4(-6) mm wide, ±round to irregularly shaped, slightly flat to convex disc: rough, dotted or fissured, when moistened often somewhat paler than sterile lobes, margin: thalline, 50-100 µm wide, indistinct; proper exciple: absent hymenium: finally separated into partial hymenia by intrusions of wedge-shaped sterile thalline tissue, partial hymenia 80-100 µm wide, 75-100 µm tall, covered by continuous layer of sterile thalline tissue separated only by the pore-like discs of the partial hymenia; partial hymenia: hyaline, IKI+ blue turning wine red; subhymenium: hyaline, finally discontinuous following the formation of partial hymenia, IKI+ blue ascus: 16-32-spored ascospores: hyaline, simple, broadly ellipsoid, small, 5-9 x 3-5 µm Pycnidia: globose to broadly pyriform, up to 200 µm wide conidia: ellipsoid, 2-3 x 1-1.5 µm Spot tests: all negative Secondary products: none detected. Substrate and ecology: on calcareous and siliceous rock World distribution: North America, Europe, North Africa, Middle East, and eastern Asia Sonoran distribution: Arizona and Baja California Sur. Notes: Abroad species concept is used here and no attempts are made to distinguish the different mainly European taxa included in the Lichinella iodopulchra-complex. Small thalli of Lichinella iodopulchra with ±adpressed, lobulate squamules may resemble large, luxuriant thalli of L. minnesotensis or L. sinaica. However, the latter two species lack the separation of the hymenium into partial hymenia. Large, distinctly lobate thalli of Lichinella iodopulchra resemble L. nigritella and L. cribellifera. In Lichinella cribellifera the lobes are distinctly folded; in L. nigritella the lobes are deeply branched and elongated and covered by small globose to scale-like isidia.