# Bellicidia

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> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Bellicidia.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellicidia
> Source revision: 1255837405
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{Short description|Single-species lichen genus}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Bellicidia incompta.jpg
| parent_authority = Kistenich, Timdal, Bendiksby & S.Ekman (2018)
| taxon = Bellicidia incompta
| authority = ([Borrer](/source/William_Borrer)) Kistenich, Timdal, Bendiksby & S.Ekman (2018)
| synonyms_ref = <ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy"/><ref name="Gerasimova et al. 2021"/>
| synonyms = {{Collapsible list|bullets=on
|''Lecidea incompta'' {{au|Borrer (1834)}}
|''Biatora effusa'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) [Fr.](/source/Elias_Magnus_Fries) (1845)}}
|''Biatora vernalis'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Fr. (1845)}}
|''Lecidea luteola'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) [Nyl.](/source/Nyl.) (1857)}}
|''Bacidia incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) [Anzi](/source/Martino_Anzi) (1860)}}
|''Lecidea bacillifera'' f. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Nyl. (1861)}}
|''Lecidea umbrina'' f. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Nyl. (1861)}}
|''Secoliga atrosanguinea'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) [Stizenb.](/source/Stizenb.) (1863)}}
|''Lecidea bacillifera'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Nyl. (1866)}}
|''Biatora rubella'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) [Tuck.](/source/Tuck.) (1868)}}
|''Bacidia bacillifera'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) [Branth](/source/Jakob_Severin_Deichmann_Branth) & [Rostr.](/source/Rostr.) (1869)}}
|''Biatora luteola'' var. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Tuck. (1872)}}
|''Lecidea subincompta'' * ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Stizenb. (1882)}}
|''Biatora rubella'' subsp. ''incompta'' {{au|(Borrer) Tuck. (1888)}}
|''Lecidea incompta'' var. ''spissa'' {{au|Shirley (1889)}}
|''Bacidia incompta'' var. ''spissa'' {{au|(Shirley) [Zahlbr.](/source/Zahlbr.) (1926)}}
|''Lecidea subincompta'' {{au|Nyl. (1865)}}
}}
}}

'''''Bellicidia''''' is a fungal [genus](/source/genus) in the family [Ramalinaceae](/source/Ramalinaceae).<ref name="CoL"/><ref name="Wijayawardene et al. 2022"/> It comprises the single species '''''Bellicidia incompta''''', a widely distributed [corticolous](/source/corticolous_lichen) (bark-dwelling) [crustose lichen](/source/crustose_lichen).

==Taxonomy==

''Bellicidia incompta'' was first [formally described](/source/species_description) as a new species in 1834 by the English botanist [William Borrer](/source/William_Borrer), who classified it in the genus ''[Lecidea](/source/Lecidea)''.<ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy"/> [Martino Anzi](/source/Martino_Anzi) transferred the [taxon](/source/taxon) to the genus ''[Bacidia](/source/Bacidia)'' in 1860,<ref name="Anzi 1860"/> and it was largely known as ''Bacidia incompta'' in its [taxonomic](/source/taxonomy_(biology)) history, although several other authors in the 1800s were reluctant to consider it a unique species, and thought it was more appropriately classed as a [subspecies](/source/subspecies), [variety](/source/variety_(botany)) or [form](/source/form_(botany)) of other species.<ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy"/>

The name ''Lecidea subincompta'', previously considered a separate species, was determined to be a [synonym](/source/synonym_(taxonomy)) of ''B.&nbsp;incompta'' based on examination of [type](/source/type_(biology)) material.<ref name="Gerasimova et al. 2021"/>

''Bellicidia'' was segregated from the genus ''[Bacidia](/source/Bacidia)'' based on [molecular phylogenetics](/source/molecular_phylogenetics) analysis, which showed that ''Bacidia incompta'' occupied a distinct evolutionary [lineage](/source/lineage_(evolution)) that had a [sister](/source/sister_group) relationship to the rest of the ''[Toninia](/source/Toninia)'' clade within the [Ramalinaceae](/source/Ramalinaceae). The generic name combines the [Latin](/source/Latin) word ''bellus'' meaning "pretty" with the ending -''cidia'' from its former placement in ''Bacidia''. This was meant to balance the somewhat disparaging [specific epithet](/source/botanical_name) ''incompta'' which means "plain" or "unadorned".<ref name="Kistenich et al. 2018"/>

==Description==

''Bellicidia'' has a coarsely {{lichengloss|granular}}, grey-green to grass-green or brown-green crustose [thallus](/source/thallus) without a {{lichengloss|prothallus}}. The upper {{lichengloss|cortex}} consists of a "false cortex" ({{lichengloss|pseudocortex}}) and lacks a lower cortex. The {{lichengloss|photobiont}} is a unicellular [green alga](/source/green_alga).<ref name="Kistenich et al. 2018"/>

The {{lichengloss|apothecia}} (fruiting bodies) of ''Bellicidia'' are black, mostly flat but sometimes becoming convex, with a distinct shiny margin and often irregular shape. Both the {{lichengloss|proper exciple}} and {{lichengloss|hypothecium}} contain a dark red-brown [pigment](/source/biological_pigment) that turns purplish in [potassium hydroxide](/source/potassium_hydroxide) solution (K+ purplish). The [hymenium](/source/hymenium) is colourless or has a faint red-brown pigment below, with young [asci](/source/ascus) often surrounded by a gelatinous cap containing red-brown pigment.<ref name="Kistenich et al. 2018"/>

The asci are club-shaped ({{lichengloss|clavate}}) and contain eight spores. These {{lichengloss|ascospores}} are {{lichengloss|bacilliform}} (rod-shaped), straight or slightly curved, 15–30&nbsp;[μm](/source/%CE%BCm) long and 1.5–2&nbsp;μm wide, with 1–5 (usually 3) thin [septa](/source/septum) (internal partitions). This combination of bacilliform ascospores and distinctive red-brown pigmentation helps distinguish ''Bellicidia'' from other genera in the ''Toninia'' group.<ref name="Kistenich et al. 2018"/><ref name="Gerasimova et al. 2021"/>

The [pycnidia](/source/pycnidia) (structures that produce asexual spores) are black, more or less {{lichengloss|immersed}} in the thallus, up to about 0.2&nbsp;mm wide, with dark red-brown walls that react purplish with K. The [conidia](/source/conidia) (asexual spores) are more or less [ellipsoid](/source/ellipsoid), 5–9&nbsp;μm long and 2–2.5&nbsp;μm wide, non-septate or sometimes with a single septum.<ref name="Kistenich et al. 2018"/>

==Habitat and distribution==

''Bellicidia incompta'' grows on bark in humid [temperate](/source/temperate) forests.<ref name="Gerasimova et al. 2021"/> It prefers basic (pH) bark, particularly ''[Ulmus](/source/Ulmus)'' (elm), although it has been recorded on trees from several genera, including ''[Acer](/source/Acer_(plant))'' (maple), ''[Aesculus](/source/Aesculus)'' (buckeye), ''[Carpinus](/source/Carpinus)'' (hormbeam), ''[Fraxinus](/source/Fraxinus)'' (ash), ''[Fagus](/source/Fagus)'' (beech), and ''[Ilex](/source/Ilex)'' (holly). The lichen is widely distributed, having been recorded in Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, and [Macaronesia](/source/Macaronesia). Records from North America are considered dubious.<ref name="Coppins & Aptroot 2009"/>

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em|refs=

<ref name="Anzi 1860">{{cite book |last=Anzi |first=M. |year=1860 |title=Catalogus lichenum quos in provincia sondriensi et circa Novum-Comum collegit et in ordinem systematicum digessit |page=76 |language=la |publisher=C. Franchi |url=https://archive.org/details/cataloguslichenu0000mart/page/70/mode/2up}}</ref>

<ref name="CoL">{{Catalogue of Life |id=62GFV |title=''Bellicidia'' |access-date=26 October 2024}}</ref>

<ref name="Coppins & Aptroot 2009">{{cite book |title=The Lichens of Great Britain and Ireland |edition=2nd |editor-last1=Smith |editor-first1=C.W. |editor-last2=Aptroot |editor-first2=A. |editor-last3=Coppins |editor-first3=B.J. |editor-last4=Fletcher |editor-first4=F. |editor-last5=Gilbert |editor-first5=O.L. |editor-last6=James |editor-first6=P.W. |editor-last7=Wolselely |editor-first7=P.A. |year=2009 |chapter=''Bacidia'' De Not. (1846) |last1=Coppins |first1=B.J. |last2=Aptroot |first2=A. |location=London |publisher=The Natural History Museum |isbn=978-0-9540418-8-5 |page=406}}</ref>

<ref name="Gerasimova et al. 2021">{{cite journal |last=Gerasimova |first=Julia V. |last2=Urbanavichene |first2=Irina N. |last3=Urbanavichus |first3=Gennady P. |last4=Beck |first4=Andreas |title=Morphological and phylogenetic analyses of ''Toniniopsis subincompta'' s. lat. (Ramalinaceae, Lecanorales) in Eurasia |journal=The Lichenologist |volume=53 |issue=2 |year=2021 |doi=10.1017/s0024282921000013 |doi-access=free |pages=171–183}}</ref>

<ref name="Kistenich et al. 2018">{{cite journal |last1=Kistenich |first1=Sonja |last2=Timdal |first2=Einar |last3=Bendiksby |first3=Mika |last4=Ekman |first4=Stefan |title=Molecular systematics and character evolution in the lichen family Ramalinaceae (Ascomycota: Lecanorales) |journal=Taxon |volume=67 |issue=5 |year=2018 |pages=871–904 |doi=10.12705/675.1|hdl=10852/67955 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

<ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy">{{cite web |title=GSD Species Synonymy. Current Name: ''Bellicidia incompta'' (Borrer) Kistenich, Timdal, Bendiksby & S. Ekman, Taxon 67(5): 891 (2018)|url=https://www.speciesfungorum.org/GSD/GSDspecies.asp?RecordID=824446 |publisher=[Species Fungorum](/source/Species_Fungorum) |access-date=26 October 2024}}</ref>

<ref name="Wijayawardene et al. 2022">{{cite journal |display-authors=6 |last1=Wijayawardene |first1=N.N. |last2=Hyde |first2=K.D. |last3=Dai |first3=D.Q. |last4=Sánchez-García |first4=M. |last5=Goto |first5=B.T. |last6=Saxena |first6=R.K. |last7=Erdoğdu |first7=M. |last8=Selçuk |first8=F. |last9=Rajeshkumar |first9=K.C. |last10=Aptroot |first10=A. |last11=Błaszkowski |first11=J. |last12=Boonyuen |first12=N. |last13=da Silva |first13=G. |last14=de Souza |first14=F.A. |last15=Dong |first15=W. |last16=Ertz |first16=D. |last17=Haelewaters |first17=D. |last18=Jones |first18=E.B. |last19=Karunarathna |first19=S.C. |last20=Kirk |first20=P.M. |last21=Kukwa |first21=M. |last22=Kumla |first22=J. |last23=Leontyev |first23=D.V. |last24=Lumbsch |first24=H.T. |last25=Maharachchikumbura |first25=S.S.N. |last26=Marguno |first26=F. |last27=Martínez-Rodríguez |first27=P. |last28=Mešić |first28=A. |last29=Monteiro |first29=J.S. |last30=Oehl |first30=F. |last31=Pawłowska |first31=J. |last32=Pem |first32=D. |last33=Pfliegler |first33=W.P. |last34=Phillips |first34=A.J.L. |last35=Pošta |first35=A. |last36=He |first36=M.Q. |last37=Li |first37=J.X. |last38=Raza |first38=M. |last39=Sruthi |first39=O.P. |last40=Suetrong |first40=S. |last41=Suwannarach |first41=N. |last42=Tedersoo |first42=L. |last43=Thiyagaraja |first43=V. |last44=Tibpromma |first44=S. |last45=Tkalčec |first45=Z. |last46=Tokarev |first46=Y.S. |last47=Wanasinghe |first47=D.N. |last48=Wijesundara |first48=D.S.A. |last49=Wimalaseana |first49=S.D.M.K. |last50=Madrid |first50=H. |last51=Zhang |first51=G.Q. |last52=Gao |first52=Y. |last53=Sánchez-Castro |first53=I. |last54=Tang |first54=L.Z. |last55=Stadler |first55=M. |last56=Yurkov |first56=A. |last57=Thines |first57=M. |year=2022 |title=Outline of Fungi and fungus-like taxa – 2021 |journal=Mycosphere |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=53–453 [152] |doi=10.5943/mycosphere/13/1/2 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/358798332|hdl=1854/LU-8754813 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

}}

{{Taxonbar |from1=Q59903893 |from2=Q59904087}}

Category:Ramalinaceae
Category:Lecanorales genera
Category:Lichen genera
Category:Taxa described in 2018
Category:Taxa named by Einar Timdal

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Bellicidia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellicidia) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellicidia?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.