Nash, T.H., Ryan, B.D., Gries, C., Bungartz, F., (eds.) 2002. Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region. Vol 1.

Life habit: lichenized Thallus: fruticose, erect and tufted to decumbent or pendent; typically attached to substrate by basal holdfasts; branching: frequently anisotomic branches: generally angular or flattened in cross-section, slender, up to 2.5-10 (-17) cm long and 0.3-1.0 mm wide at base, 0.1-0.4 mm diam. on main branches, uneven in diam., foveolate and channelled, brittle; lateral branches: rarely abundant, spinulose, not constricted at the base surface: dull, rarely somewhat shiny, ± dark reddish brown (to greenish when wet), not becoming blackened; soredia and isidia absent cortex: 2-layered, outer layer distinctly paraplectenchymatous, thin (20-25 µm thick), of periclinal hyphae with short, irregularly shaped (knobby) cells with outer wall thinner than the lumina, interdigitating and forming a jig-saw pattern as seen in surface view, inner layer prosoplectenchymatous medulla: white; cell walls with isolichenan photobiont: primary one chlorococcoid alga, secondary one absent Ascomata: apothecial, common in most species, borne laterally (or subterminally), roundish, sessile, lecanorine; thalline exciple: prominent, ciliate; disc: reddish brown, concave to sometimes markedly convex, outer-ascomatal filaments absent; true exciple: distinct, well-developed, strongly gelatinized, hyaline, with upper layer 30-40 µm thick, lower layer 30-45 µm thick; hymenium: hyaline below and yellow-brown (K-) above, 44-52 µm high; paraphyses: branched, not anastomosing, tips distinctly capitate in K, dark brown; hypothecium: hyaline asci: Lecanora-type s.l. (Parmelia-type), c. 25-30 x 10-12 (-15) µm, axial body 2.5-3.0 µm wide, 8-spored ascospores: non-septate, ellipsoid to subspherical, obtuse at the poles, colorless, 8-9 x 5-6 µm; wall: smooth, without distinct endospore thickening, I- Conidiomata: pycnidial, rather frequent, laminal, immersed to prominent and black, up to 120 µm in diam. conidia: straight, bifusiform to almost bacilliform, 5-8 x 0.5-0.7 (-1.0) µm Secondary metabolites: none detected Geography: cool temperate areas of western North America and Greenland Substrate: on bark or wood, or soil, detritus, or siliceous rock. Notes: This genus is distinguished from Bryoria by the color of the thallus, the thin, 2-layered cortex with jig-saw puzzle appearance in surface view, its brown and capitate paraphyses tips, frequent pycnidia, absence of secondary substances, and absence of lichenan. The distinctive cortical structure of Nodobryoria is somewhat difficult to see because of the underlying layers, and seems to be most easily observed at 40x. Kaernefeltia californica, which has often been confused with Nodobryoria (abbreviata), is strictly coastal, and differs in its pale olive-brown to greenish black thallus, mostly 1-layered cortex, grayish olive epihymenium (K+ grayish reddish purple) and pale, clavate paraphyses tips, and in containing fatty acids and lichenan. Likewise, while the thallus surface of Nodobryoria is usually quite dull rather than shiny, but it is slightly lustrous in the Sonoran specimens relative to the very dull appearance given by the pruina that frequently occur on Kaernefeltia californica. Further comparisons of the three species now placed in Nodobryoria are given in Brodo and Alstrup (1981).