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, lichenicolous or not Thallus: squamulose squamules: up to 4 mm diam., dispersed or adjacent, rounded or usually more irregular, weakly concave to weakly convex upper surface: pale gray, olivaceous, or medium to dark brown, epruinose or partly to entirely pruinose, dull, smooth, lacking pores and pseudocyphellae, often with maculae in convex parts upper cortex: up to 90 µm high, lacking calcium oxalate margin: concolorous with upper surface Apothecia: up to 1.5 mm diam., plane and marginate, sometimes becoming convex and immarginate, epruinose or faintly pruinose; exciple: dark reddish brown throughout; hypothecium: dark reddish brown; epithecium: bright to dark green (K-, N+ violet) asci: clavate, 8-spored ascospores: ellipsoid to bacilliform, 1-3 septate, 12-22.5 x 4-5.5 µm Pycnidia: laminal, immersed conidia: filiform Spot tests: all negative Secondary metabolites: none detected. Host: crustose green algae-lichens or rarely cyanolichens Substrate and ecology: on soil and rock in open habitats, up to 1370 m World distribution: widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, Australia, and New Zealand Sonoran distribution: locally common on the coast, rare inland, in California, Baja California, Baja California Sur and Sonora.