Anzia entingiana
Anzia entingiana is a species of corticolous foliose lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. Found only in New Zealand, this lichen grows on tree bark in northern parts of the North Island, including kauri forests and coastal areas. It was described as a new species in 1997 by the Australian lichenologist John Elix in honour of the New Zealand lichenologist and photographer Brian Enting. The species forms small, pale grey patches with narrow and produces tall, slender reproductive structures that help distinguish it from related species.
Taxonomy
Anzia entingiana was described by John Elix in 1997 and named in honour of the New Zealand lichenologist and photographer Brian Enting. Elix separated it from the other New Zealand endemic species in the genus, A. jamesii. Both are small, corticolous members of Anzia, but A. entingiana has narrower, convex and tall, slender isidia that are not at the tips, and it contains protocetraric acid in the medulla. By contrast, A. jamesii has broader, flatter lobes, thicker and shorter isidia with pruinose tips, and anziacic acid with 4-O-methylhypoprotocetraric acid. Some sparsely isidiate material had been confused with A. madagascariensis, a species now regarded as absent from New Zealand; that taxon lacks isidia and has fumarprotocetraric acid rather than protocetraric acid.
Description
The thallus is bark-dwelling, to loosely attached, forming small, circular to spreading patches about 2–5 cm across. Lobes are linear, separate to crowded and dichotomously to subdichotomously branched, 0.4–1.2 mm wide. The upper surface is pale grey to pale grey-green, convex and smooth, conspicuously spotted ; medulla K–, C–, P+. Identified substances include atranorin and chloroatranorin in the cortex and protocetraric acid with trace virensic acid in the medulla.
Habitat and distribution
Anzia entingiana is a corticolous lichen. The type was collected at low elevation near Swanson on kauri, and additional specimens are from northern parts of the North Island. It has also been recorded from surveys at Waimamaku and Hokianga.