{{Short description|Genus of lichens}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2025}} {{Use Oxford spelling|date=October 2025}} {{Automatic taxobox | image = Blastenia ferruginea 31948222.jpg | image_caption = ''Blastenia ferruginea'' | taxon = Blastenia | authority = A.Massal. (1852) | type_species = Blastenia ferruginea | type_species_authority = (Huds.) A.Massal. (1852) }}
'''''Blastenia''''' is a genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Teloschistaceae.<ref name="CoL_62FSK"/> The genus was established in 1852 by the Italian botanist Abramo Massalongo, who brought together several species that had previously been scattered across different genera. These lichens are characterised by their rust-brown to orange-red fruiting bodies and a thin, crusty growth that often breaks into small plate-like sections. The genus includes around 40 recognised species found primarily in the Mediterranean region and Macaronesia, though some species have spread to other parts of the world.
==Taxonomy==
The genus was circumscribed in 1852 by Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo. Massalongo characterised ''Blastenia'' by its discoid fruiting bodies with their own proper rim ({{lichengloss|exciple}}), the {{lichengloss|disc}} coloured rust-brown to saffron-red and often becoming slightly swollen and almost spherical; the apothecia are centrally attached and pressed to the thallus. He described the fertile layer as thin to cartilaginous and set above an {{lichengloss|algal layer}}, with club-shaped asci containing four to eight spores and paraphyses that are rather loosely septate but thickened at the tips. The ascospores were said to be ellipsoid, colourless and rounded or slightly tapered at the ends, with two "polar" compartments linked by a thread-like waist—sometimes so thin as to appear to vanish—and surrounded by a very delicate outer wall. The thallus was defined as entirely crustose and closely adherent, either effuse (spreading) or with a more clearly delimited outline, underlain by a faintly fibrous hypothallus. Massalongo also made clear that he was gathering species that had previously been scattered across several broad genera of the day (e.g. ''Lecidea'', ''Patellaria'', ''Biatora'', ''Parmelia'', ''Placodium'', and even Persoon's catch-all ''Lichen''), and giving them a distinct home under ''Blastenia''. He included seven species in his circumscription of the genus,<ref name="Massalongo 1852"/> although he did not explicitly designate a type species.<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/>
In the absence of an original type, ''Blastenia ferruginea'' was designated as the generic type by Clements & Shear (1931). Through much of the 20th century, ''Blastenia'' was treated as a synonym of ''Caloplaca''; the genus was reinstated on multi-locus phylogenetic grounds by Arup and colleagues in 2013, who circumscribed a clade close to ''Gyalolechia'' within subfamily Caloplacoideae. A three-locus phylogeny (ITS, β-tubulin, mtLSU) resolves ''Blastenia'' into six infrageneric groups—''Crenularia'', ''Herbidella'', ''Hungarica'', ''Festivella'', ''Psychrophila'' and ''Relicta''—comprising 24 species and two subspecies recognised with coalescent-based species delimitation. Several lineages show shallow recent splits, whereas the ''Relicta'' group appears oldest. The genus itself likely originated in the early Tertiary period, with most diversification dated Miocene–Pleistocene.<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/>
==Description==
Species of ''Blastenia'' form thin, crust-like lichens that often break up into a mosaic of small plates (an {{lichengloss|areolate}} thallus). The thallus may cover large patches or be reduced to a narrow rim around the fruiting bodies, and ranges from white through dark grey to wholly or partly yellow. A dark marginal {{lichengloss|prothallus}} is sometimes present—either as a fine black border or as black zone lines where neighbouring lichens meet. The plates are usually flat when young, but in older growth they can become uneven or slightly domed. In some species the thallus produces minute powdery or wart-like outgrowths (soredia, {{lichengloss|blastidia}} or isidia), which are vegetative propagules that help the lichen spread. The outer skin ({{lichengloss|cortex}}) is poorly developed or inconspicuous, though a very thin, dead, protective surface layer (an {{lichengloss|epinecral layer}}) is often present.<ref name="Cannon et al. 2024"/> thumb|upright=1.5|right|Microscopic characters of ''Blastenia crenularia'' The sexual fruiting bodies (apothecia) sit directly on the thallus (sessile), sometimes with a slightly narrowed base, and are pale orange to deep red, occasionally tending towards blackish. Their rim (the {{lichengloss|exciple}}) is thin and matches or is darker than the central {{lichengloss|disc}} Under the microscope the top layer of the disc ({{lichengloss|epithecium}}) appears granular and crystalline, and the tissue beneath the disc ({{lichengloss|hypothecium}}) is often partly yellowish or brownish; in simple spot tests it does not react with potassium hydroxide (K–) but turns orange with nitric acid (N+). The supporting hyphae between the spore sacs (paraphyses) may branch and fuse and are typically swollen at the tips. The spore sacs (asci) are club-shaped and contain eight spores. The spores themselves are colourless, usually ellipsoidal, and {{lichengloss|polarilocular}}: each spore is divided by a relatively thick septum into two chambers, one at each end.<ref name="Cannon et al. 2024"/>
Asexual reproduction is common through small flask-like structures (pycnidia) that form low bumps on the thallus; these are sometimes divided into several chambers, and their tips are usually orange to red. They release tiny, rod-shaped conidia. Chemically, ''Blastenia'' species contain anthraquinone pigments that give many of them their yellow-orange colours. Two main profiles occur: one dominated by parietin (often with emodin, fallacinal, parietinic acid and teloschistin), and another dominated by 7-chloro-emodin (with emodin, 7-chloro-citreorosein and 7-chloro-emodinal). A green-grey pigment known as cinereorufa-green can be present—subtle and sometimes hard to see—and in section it gives a violet reaction with the N test but none with K (K–, N+ violet); sedifolia-grey pigment is absent.<ref name="Cannon et al. 2024"/>
Three chemotypes occur across the genus. The presumed ancestral state combines non-chlorinated anthraquinones (parietin-based) in the disc with chlorinated derivatives in the exciple; a second state shows secondary reduction of chlorination, whereas a third has chlorinated anthraquinones throughout the apothecia with reduced parietin. These patterns are phylogenetically structured (e.g. consistent in parts of the ''Hungarica'' and ''Crenularia'' groups).<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/>
==Habitat, distribution, and ecology==
Diversity centres for ''Blastenia'' occur in the Mediterranean basin (the western remnant of the Tethys Ocean) and Macaronesia, with multiple groups nested there; long-distance dispersal explains scattered occurrences elsewhere. Epilithic species have constrained ranges tied to suitable siliceous rock, whereas several epiphytic taxa (e.g. ''B. ammiospila'', ''B. monticola'') are widely distributed.<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/>
Species are sharply substrate-segregated: most are epiphytic on bark, wood, twigs or plant debris, while seven are consistently epilithic on acidic siliceous rock (rare to absent on limestone). The ''Hungarica'' group is twig-specialised and has smaller apothecia; ''Psychrophila'' species are cold-adapted, occurring in boreal–montane to arctic–alpine settings.<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/>
==Species== thumb|right|Fruiting bodies of ''Blastenia hungarica''
{{As of|2025|September}}, Species Fungorum (in the Catalogue of Life) accepts 41 species of ''Blastenia''.<ref name="CoL_62FSK"/> * ''Blastenia afroalpina'' {{au|Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia ammiospila'' {{au|(Wahlenb. ex Ach.) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia allorgei'' {{au|B.de Lesd. (1943)}} * ''Blastenia ammiospila'' {{au|(Wahlenb. ex Ach.) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}} * ''Blastenia anatolica'' {{au|Halıcı, Arup & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia carnella'' {{au|(Nyl.) Müll.Arg. (1889)}}<ref name="Müller 1888"/> * ''Blastenia catalinae'' {{au|(H.Magn.) E.D.Rudolph (2015)}}<ref name="Kondratyuk et al. 2015"/> * ''Blastenia caucasica'' {{au|I.V.Frolov & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia circumpolaris'' {{au|Søchting, Frödén & Arup (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia coralliza'' {{au|(Arup & Åkelius) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia crenularia'' {{au|(With.) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia crocea'' {{au|(Kremp.) Müll. Arg. (1886)}} * ''Blastenia endochromoides'' {{au|Müll.Arg. (1894)}}<ref name="Müller 1894"/> * ''Blastenia ferruginea'' {{au|(Huds.) A.Massal. (1852)}}<ref name="Massalongo 1852b"/> * ''Blastenia festivella'' {{au|(Nyl.) Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia furfuracea'' {{au|(H.Magn.) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia gennargentuae'' {{au|Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia gordejevii'' {{au|Tomin (1926)}} * ''Blastenia guadeloupensis'' {{au|B.de Lesd. (1943)}} * ''Blastenia hungarica'' {{au|(H.Magn.) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia keroblasta'' {{au|Zahlbr. (1906)}}<ref name="Zahlbruckner 1906"/> * ''Blastenia lamii'' {{au|B.de Lesd. (1943)}} * ''Blastenia lauri'' {{au|Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia macquariensis'' {{au|C.W.Dodge (1968)}}<ref name="Dodge 1968"/> * ''Blastenia monticola'' {{au|Arup & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia palmae'' {{au|Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia peragrata'' {{au|(Fée) Mig. (1952)}} * ''Blastenia personata'' {{au|Hulting (1900)}} * ''Blastenia poliotera'' {{au|(Nyl.) Müll.Arg. (1880)}} * ''Blastenia psychrophila'' {{au|Halıcı & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia pulcherrima'' {{au|Müll.Arg. (1888)}}<ref name="Müller 1888"/> * ''Blastenia purpurea'' {{au|Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia relicta'' {{au|Arup & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia remota'' {{au|Obermayer & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia scabrosa'' {{au|(Søchting, Lorentsen & Arup) S.Y. Kondr. & Hur (2014)}} * ''Blastenia sparsa'' {{au|Js.Murray (1963)}} * ''Blastenia subathallina'' {{au|(H.Magn.) Arup & Vondrák (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/> * ''Blastenia subochracea'' {{au|(Wedd.) Arup, Søchting & Frödén (2013)}}<ref name="Arup et al. 2013"/> * ''Blastenia xerothermica'' {{au|Vondrák, Arup & I.V.Frolov (2019)}}<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020"/>
==References== {{Reflist|colwidth=30em|refs=
<ref name="Arup et al. 2013">{{cite journal |last1=Arup |first1=Ulf |last2=Søchting |first2=Ulrik |last3=Frödén |first3=Patrik |title=A new taxonomy of the family Teloschistaceae |journal=Nordic Journal of Botany |volume=31 |issue=1 |year=2013 |pages=16–83 |doi=10.1111/j.1756-1051.2013.00062.x |bibcode=2013NorJB..31...16A }}</ref>
<ref name="Cannon et al. 2024">{{cite book |last1=Cannon |first1=P. |last2=Arup |first2=U. |last3=Coppins |first3=B. |last4=Aptroot |first4=A. |last5=Sanderson |first5=N. |last6=Simkin |first6=J. |last7=Yahr |first7=R. |year=2024 |title=Teloschistales, including ''Brigantiaea'' (Brigantiaeaceae), ''Megalospora'' (Megalosporaceae) and ''Amundsenia'', ''Athallia'', ''Blastenia'', ''Calogaya'', ''Caloplaca'', ''Cerothallia'', ''Coppinsiella'', ''Flavoplaca'', ''Gyalolechia'', ''Haloplaca'', ''Huneckia'', ''Kuettlingeria'', ''Leproplaca'', ''Marchantiana'', ''Olegblumea'', ''Polycauliona'', ''Pyrenodesmia'', ''Rufoplaca'', ''Rusavskia'', ''Sanguineodiscus'', ''Scythioria'', ''Solitaria'', ''Squamulea'', ''Teloschistes'', ''Variospora'', ''Xanthocarpia'', ''Xanthomendoza'' and ''Xanthoria'' (Teloschistaceae) |series=Revisions of British and Irish Lichens |volume=43 |pages=19–20 |url=https://britishlichensociety.org.uk/sites/default/files/Teloschistales.pdf}} {{Open access}}</ref>
<ref name="CoL_62FSK">{{Catalogue of Life |id=62FSK |title=''Blastenia'' |access-date=15 October 2025}}</ref>
<ref name="Dodge 1968">{{cite journal |last=Dodge |first=C.W. |year=1968 |title=Lichenological notes on the flora of the Antarctic continent and the subantarctic islands. VII.-VIII |journal=Nova Hedwigia |volume=15 |pages=285–332 [294]}}</ref>
<ref name="Kondratyuk et al. 2015">{{cite journal |last1=Kondratyuk |first1=S.Y. |last2=Kim |first2=J.A. |last3=Yu |first3=N.-H. |last4=Jeong |first4=M.-H. |last5=Jang |first5=S.H. |last6=Kondratiuk |first6=A.S. |last7=Zarei-Darki |first7=B. |last8=Hur |first8=J.-S. |year=2015 |title=''Zeroviella'', a new genus of xanthorioid lichens (Teloschistaceae, Ascomycetes) proved by three gene phylogeny |journal=Ukrainian Botanical Journal |volume=72 |issue=6 |pages=574–584 |doi=10.15407/ukrbotj72.06.574 |url=https://ukrbotj.co.ua/pdf/72/6/ukrbotj-2015-72-6-574.pdf}}</ref>
<ref name="Massalongo 1852">{{cite journal |last=Massalongo |first=A.B. |year=1852 |title=Synopsis lichenum blasteniosporum |trans-title=Synopsis of the blasteniosporous lichens |journal=Flora |volume=35 |pages=561–576 [573] |language=la |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/46790}}</ref>
<ref name="Massalongo 1852b">{{cite journal |last1=Massalongo |first1=A.B. |year=1852 |title=Monografia dei licheni blasteniospori |trans-title=Monograph of the blasteniosporous lichens |journal=Atti dell'Istituto Veneto Scienze |series=2 |volume=3 (App. 3) |page=102}}</ref>
<ref name="Müller 1888">{{cite journal |last=Müller |first=J. |year=1888 |title=Lichenologische Beiträge XXVIII |trans-title=Lichenological Contributions XXVIII |journal=Flora |volume=71 |issue=9 |pages=129–142 [141] |language=la |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/70626}}</ref>
<ref name="Müller 1894">{{cite journal |last=Müller |first=J. |year=1894 |title=Conspectus systematicus lichenum Novae Zelandiae |trans-title=Systematic overview of the lichens of New Zealand |journal=Bulletin de l'Herbier Boissier |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=1–114 [69] |language=la |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/33740651}}</ref>
<ref name="Vondrák et al. 2020">{{cite journal |last1=Vondrák |first1=Jan |last2=Frolov |first2=Ivan |last3=Košnar |first3=Jiří |last4=Arup |first4=Ulf | last5=Veselská |first5=Tereza |last6=Halıcı |first6=Gökhan |last7=Malíček |first7=Jiří |last8=Søchting |first8=Ulrik |title=Substrate switches, phenotypic innovations and allopatric speciation formed taxonomic diversity within the lichen genus ''Blastenia'' |journal=Journal of Systematics and Evolution |volume=58 |issue=3 |year=2020 |doi=10.1111/jse.12503 |pages=295–330 |bibcode=2020JSyEv..58..295V }}</ref>
<ref name="Zahlbruckner 1906">{{cite journal |last=Zahlbruckner |first=A. |year=1906 |title=Die Flechten der Deutschen Südpolarexpedition 1901–1903 |trans-title=The lichens of the German South Polar Expedition 1901–1903 |journal=Deutsche Südpolarexpedition 1901–1903 |volume=8 |pages=19–55 [28] |language=la}}</ref>
}}
{{taxonbar|from=Q21225574}}
Category:Teloschistales Category:Lichen genera Category:Teloschistales genera Category:Taxa named by Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo Category:Taxa described in 1852