Ocellularia diospyri
Ocellularia diospyri is a rare species of corticolous lichen in the family Graphidaceae. It is found in northern Thailand.
Taxonomy
The lichen was formally described as a new species in 2002 by lichenologists Natsurang Homchantara and Brian J. Coppins. The type specimen was collected from Ton Krabak Yai National Park at an elevation of about ; here, in a mixed forest, it was found growing on the trunk of a Diospyros tree. This genus is alluded to in the specific epithet diospyri. The lichen is only known to occur at the type locality.Description
Ocellularia diospyri has a smooth, shiny, oliveaceous thallus with a thick cortex. The apothecia occur solitarily and are immersed in the medulla. They have a diameter of 0.6–0.65 mm, with a brown, fused exciple. The columella is carbonized and is visible from the small apothecial pore; it measures 0.08–0.2 mm in diameter. The ascospores are thin walled, spindle-shaped, and have from 12 to 23 locules ; they typically measure 102.5–164.5 by15.0–20.5 μm. This is unusually long for columellate species in the genus Ocellularia. O. diospyri contains the secondary compounds stictic acid and constictic acid.