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Mexican candelina lichen
Scientific Name: Candelina mexicana
Family: Candelariaceae
Category: Lichen
Growth: Lichenous
Duration:
Other Names:
Candelina mexicana
Also known as Mexican candelina lichen or Mexican Yolk Lichen, Candelina mexicana is a fascinating lichen species with unique characteristics and distribution.
Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Scientific Name: Candelina mexicana (de Lesd.) Poelt
- Family: Candelariaceae
- Category: Lichen
- Division: (Unspecified in text, likely Fungi/Lichens)
- Synonyms:
- Candelina submexicana
- Caloplaca submexicana
- Caloplacopsis submexicana
- Candelariella submexicana
Distribution and Habitat
- Candelina mexicana is found from central Mexico to the southwestern USA.
- Specifically, it's noted in the Sonoran Desert region, including Madera Canyon, Santa Rita Mts., Pima Co., Arizona.
- It grows on rocks and boulders in open habitats.
- Also reported from Baja California Sur, Mexico, at an elevation of 400 m.
Morphological Characteristics
- It is a crustose lichen.
- Some sources suggest C. mexicana is brighter in color than C. submexicana.
- "Rock-olive lichens" similar to *Candelina* can be scaly to minutely shrubby lichens, with flattened to erect, rather round lobes.
- "Mexican yolk lichen" similar to *Candelina submexicana* are deep yellow and lobed, with a deep yellow medulla.
Interactions with Other Organisms
- Candelariella lichenicola is a lichenicolous species that grows on Candelina.
Further Information
- Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region
- Arizona State University Lichen Collection
- Canadian Museum of Nature
- Catalogue of Life
- Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) - TSN 190252 for Candelina submexicana