Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2004. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 2.

Thallus: foliose, up to 4 cm in diam., rather orbicular to more often irregular, sometimes coalescing lobes: somewhat irregularly rounded and partly imbricate, 0.5-1.5(-2) mm broad, often +irregularly concave near the lobe ends, prostrate upper surface: gray to mostly gray-brown, epruinose but occasionally with a light, patchy epinecral layer (pruina-like) on the lobe ends, with sparse, hyaline to blackening cortical hairs on the upper surface of the narrower lobes soredia/isidia: granular to strongly isidioid or occasionally irregularly lobulate, in primarily marginal clusters, usually bearing hyaline or darkening hairs like those of some lobe ends upper cortex: paraplectenchymatous medulla: white lower cortex: paraplectenchymatous lower surface: black, sometimes paler at the lobe ends, dull; rhizines: simple, black Apothecia: infrequent, up to 2.5 mm in diam., sessile; margin: usually entire, often bearing a dense corona of rhizines ascospores: ellipsoid, (21-)23-32(-34) x (8-)10-14 µm, Physcia-type Spot tests: all negative in cortex and medulla Secondary metabolites: none detected. Substrate and ecology: on rock or mosses over rock (else-where also on bark) World distribution: North America, Europe, and Asia Sonoran distribution: known only from one locality in Arizona (Apache Co.) at c. 3290 m. Notes: Phaeophyscia kairamoi is uncommon in North America and even rarer in the study area. It is most likely to be confused with the very common and variable P. hirsuta, because that species sometimes has very granular or even isidioid soredia, and these may rarely bear small multicellular hairs like those of P. kairamoi. That species is usually smaller and has narrower, flat lobes, and typically has somewhat more numerous and conspicuous cortical (multicellular) hairs on the lobes.