Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula Acarosporaceae
Myriospora smaragdula (Acarospora smaragdula)

Growth type crustose
Chemical results usually K+ red, C-, KC+ red, P+ yellow. Rarely K- or KC-

On sheltered +/- base-rich siliceous rocks, sites rich in heavy metals and on sheltered stones below metal run-off.

Variable. Thallus usually pale creamy brown but yellowish-green on copper-rich rocks. Scattered flat to convex areoles that can form continuous crust. Usually 3-7 apothecia in each areole, red-brown to blackish, margins absent or well developed. The asci are >100-spored, spores 2-5 x 1-2 µm. Microscope photograph below.

Similar: A. fuscata. Brownish areoles, K-, C+ red, KC+ red. Larger spores


Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula

Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula

Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula

Microscope photograph
Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula

Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula
Myriospora smaragdula, Acarospora smaragdula
Kimmeridge and Lytchett Minster, Dorset. March 2014, December 2016

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