{{Short description|Species of lichen-forming fungus}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2026}} {{Use Oxford spelling|date=March 2026}} {{Speciesbox | image = | image_caption = | taxon = Fuscidea asbolodes | authority = (Nyl.) Hertel & V.Wirth (1984) | synonyms_ref = <ref name="Fungal Names"/> | synonyms = *''Lecidea asbolodes'' {{au|Nyl. (1876)}} *''Fuscidea absolodes'' {{au|(Nyl.) Hertel & V.Wirth (1984)}} }}

'''''Fuscidea asbolodes''''' is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling) crustose lichen-forming fungus in the family Fuscideaceae.<ref name="CoL_6K4HB"/> Originally described in 1876 from the Kerguelen Islands, it has a thin, crust-like thallus that is usually pale greyish to brownish grey. The species is widespread in the Subantarctic, with records from several island groups and the South Island of New Zealand.

==Taxonomy== ''Fuscidea asbolodes'' was first formally described by William Nylander in 1876, as ''Lecidea asbolodes''. The type specimens were collected from the Kerguelen Islands. Nylander described it as a saxicolous lichen with a thin, sooty thallus, small black margined apothecia, shortly ellipsoid spores, and slender paraphyses, and noted its close resemblance to ''Lecidea leiotea'' (now known as ''Amandinea pelidna''<ref name="IF: Lecidea leiotea"/>), which he said differed in having {{lichengloss|immarginate}} apothecia and thicker paraphyses.<ref name="Nylander 1876"/> Hannes Hertel and Volkmar Wirth reclassified the species in ''Fuscidea'' in 1984.<ref name="Hertel 1984"/>

==Description== ''Fuscidea asbolodes'' has a thin, crust-like thallus that may be rather indistinct, and is usually pale greyish to brownish grey. The thallus is about 100–200&nbsp;micrometres (μm) thick and contains no lichen products detectable by chemical analysis. Its apothecia (fruiting bodies) are small, black, and usually semi-immersed, with {{lichengloss|discs}} that are rounded but often somewhat irregular or angular, and are typically about 0.3–0.6&nbsp;mm wide. The asci are more or less cylindrical, and the ascospores are broadly ellipsoid to almost spherical, measuring about 9–12 by 6–9&nbsp;μm. In Tasmanian specimens, the inner rim of the apothecia may be faintly dusted with a white {{lichengloss|pruina}}, although the importance of this feature is uncertain.<ref name="Kantvilas 2001"/>

==Habitat and distribution== ''Fuscidea asbolodes'' is a rock-dwelling species that appears to be widespread in the Subantarctic. It has been recorded from Marion Prince Edward Islands, Heard Island, the Kerguelen Islands, Macquarie Island, the Auckland Islands, and the South Island of New Zealand. In Tasmania, however, it seems to be much less certain and far less frequently collected. Material once referred to this species there was later considered to belong to the closely related ''Fuscidea subasbolodes'', and ''F.&nbsp;asbolodes'' in the strict sense has been confirmed in Tasmania from only two collections.<ref name="Kantvilas 2001"/>

==References== <references>

<ref name="CoL_6K4HB">{{Catalogue of Life |id=6K4HB |title=''Fuscidea asbolodes'' (Nyl.) Hertel & V.Wirth |access-date=24 March 2026}}</ref>

<ref name="Fungal Names">{{cite web |title=''Fuscidea asbolodes'' |website=Fungal Names |url=https://nmdc.cn/fungalnames/namesearch/toallfungalinfo?recordNumber=107502 |access-date=24 March 2026}}</ref>

<ref name="Hertel 1984">{{cite book |last=Hertel |first=H. |title=Über saxicole, lecideoide Flechten der Subantarktis |trans-title=On saxicolous, lecideoid lichens of the Subantarctic |language=de |publisher=J. Cramer |series=Beihefte zur Nova Hedwigia |year=1984 |volume=79 |pages=399–499 [454] |isbn=978-3-768-25479-3}}</ref>

<ref name="IF: Lecidea leiotea">{{cite web |title=''Lecidea leiotea'' Nyl., Flora, Regensburg 50: 328 (1867) |url=https://www.indexfungorum.org/names/NamesRecord.asp?RecordID=391210 |publisher=Index Fungorum |access-date=24 March 2026}}</ref>

<ref name="Kantvilas 2001">{{cite book |last=Kantvilas |first=Gintaras |year=2001 |chapter=The lichen family Fuscidaceae in Tasmania |title=Lichenological Contributions in Honour of Jack Elix |editor-last1=McCarthy |editor-first1=P.M. |editor-last2=Kantvilas |editor-first2=G. |editor-last3=Louwhoff |editor-first3=S.H.J.J. |series=Bibliotheca Lichenologica |volume=78 |publisher=J. Cramer |location=Berlin/Stuttgart |pages=169–192 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/279752002}}</ref>

<ref name="Nylander 1876">{{cite journal |last=Crombie |first=J.M. |year=1876 |title=New lichens from Kerguelen's Land |journal=The Journal of Botany, British and Foreign |volume=14 |pages=21–22}}</ref>

</references>

{{Taxonbar |from1=Q10500378 |from2=Q59506158 |from3=Q107686842}}

Category:Umbilicariales Category:Lichen species Category:Lichens described in 1876 Category:Lichens of Australia Category:Lichens of the subantarctic islands Category:Lichens of New Zealand Category:Taxa named by William Nylander (botanist)