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Usnea flammea
Nomenclature
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Family: ParmeliaceaeGenus: Usnea
SUMMARY
Thallus to 3(-8) cm long, erect to subpendulous, sometimes scrambling, forming sparsely branched, lax to compact, dense tufts. Main branches several, often arising 3-5 mm above the often strongly annulated stalk above the holdfast, rather stout, to 1 mm diam., sparingly to richly branched, the branches often originating at ± the same level forming a brush or tassel-like tuft of finer secondary branches towards the apices. Thallus surface matt to slightly shiny, pale green- to yellow-grey, not blackened at the base, usually with ± numerous, pale annular cracks, especially towards the holdfast, forming nonconstricted, but sometimes worm-like segments, scarcely narrowed at their point of attachment. Papillae often scarce or absent in patches on main branches, when present warted, sometimes eroded to form soralia. Soralia flat or slightly tuberculate, efflorescent, rounded, with clusters of very fragile, easily abraded isidiomorphs. Medulla moderately compact to lax, yielding to the fingernail.
Anamorph: not observed.
Teleomorph: ascomata apothecia, very rare.
Chemistry: thallus C–, K+ yellow or sometimes blood-red , KC–, Pd+ yellow-orange (usnic, stictic, menegazziaic, constictic and ± norstictic and ± lobaric acids).