Cheilymenia coprinaria
Anamorph: not known.
Teleomorph: stromata absent. Ascomata apothecia, to 10 (-15) mm diam., scattered or aggregated, sessile, ± discoid, fleshy, the hymenium orange to red, the external surface orange and scurfy, covered with ± hyaline to pale yellow-brown unbranched hairs (170-) 300-800 µm long and 20-40 µm diam., the base slightly constricted and usually lobed or shortly bifurcate and the apex acute. Peridium composed of globose thin-walled cells to 25 µm diam. Interascal tissue composed of unbranched paraphyses to 3.5 µm diam., containing orange carotenoid pigments, the apex clavate, to ca 10 µm diam. Asci 180-220 x 10-13 µm, cylindrical, with a tapering stalk, the apex rounded to truncate, fairly thin-walled, operculate, not staining in iodine, 8-spored. Ascospores arranged ± obliquely uniseriately, 14.5-18 x (7.5-) 8-9.5 µm, cylindric-ellipsoidal, aseptate, hyaline, smooth, fairly thin-walled, with an epispore that sometimes becomes detached when warmed in lactic acid.
Not formally assessed, and problematic due to historical confusion with Cheilymenia fimicola. C. coprinaria is probably not threatened, but further verified records would be valuable.
Similar to Cheilymenia fimicola, but with usually larger apothecia and smaller ascospores (14.5-18 µm long in C. coprinaria compared with 21-26 µm in C. fimicola).
On herbivore dung, especially that of cow.
Scattered throughout Great Britain, with a substantial number of records from Northern Ireland.