Siphula
Siphula is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Icmadophilaceae. The widespread genus was circumscribed by the Swedish mycologist Elias Fries in 1831.
Description
The genus Siphula includes lichens with a shrubby, upright thallus that is sparsely branched and has a whitish appearance. The outer surface, or, is, meaning it consists of densely packed cells resembling plant parenchyma. Siphula species partner with algae, a type of green algae that supplies the lichen with energy through photosynthesis.Inside the thallus, the medulla is compact and has fungal filaments that are generally aligned in a longitudinal direction. No reproductive structures, such as apothecia or conidiomata, have been observed to occur in this genus.
Chemically, Siphula lichens contain various compounds including p- and m-depsides, dibenzofurans, and chromones, such as the compound siphulin.
Habitat and distribution
Siphula species are found growing on peaty soils and on acid-leached bark in temperate rainforests as well as in wet alpine environments. This genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring across various regions worldwide.Species
, Species Fungorum accepts 22 species of Siphula:- Siphula australiensis
- Siphula capensis
- Siphula ceratites
- Siphula chimantensis
- Siphula coriacea
- Siphula crittendenii
- Siphula decumbens
- Siphula dissoluta
- Siphula fastigiata
- Siphula flavovirens
- Siphula gracilis
- Siphula paramensis
- Siphula parhamii
- Siphula pteruloides
- Siphula subpteruloides
- Siphula subsimplex
- ''Siphula verrucigera''