{{Short description|Species of lichen-forming fungus}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2026}} {{Use American English|date=January 2026}} {{Speciesbox | image = | image_caption = | taxon = Gyalectidium conchiferum | authority = [[Robert Lücking|Lücking]] & V.Wirth (2001) }}

'''''Gyalectidium conchiferum''''' is a leaf-dwelling ([[foliicolous lichen|foliicolous]]) species of [[lichen]]-forming [[fungus]] in the family [[Gomphillaceae]].<ref name="CoL_3HNNN"/> It is known from the [[Valdivian temperate forests|Valdivian temperate rainforest]] of southern Chile, where it forms small greenish-gray patches on living leaves. The species is characterized by its distinctive mussel-shaped reproductive structures that stand upright at the [[thallus]] margin, which distinguish it from similar smooth-thallusеd species in the genus.

==Taxonomy== ''Gyalectidium conchiferum'' was [[species description|described]] as a new species in 2001 by [[Robert Lücking]] and Volkmar Wirth, based on material collected in southern Chile. The [[type (biology)|type]] was collected from Volcan El Mocho near [[Choshuenco]], about {{cvt|100|km}} east of [[Valdivia]] at an elevation of {{cvt|600|–|630|m}}. In the original account it was compared with ''[[Gyalectidium catenulatum]]'', which has a similar smooth [[thallus]], but differs in the shape and placement of the {{lichengloss|hyphophores}} (specialized, often stalked structures that produce [[asexual reproduction|asexual]] fungal filaments).<ref name="Ferraro et al. 2001"/>

==Description== The thallus (the main body of the lichen) forms rounded patches about 1–5&nbsp;mm across. It is smooth and lacks crystals, and is greenish gray to green.<ref name="Ferraro et al. 2001"/>

Hyphophores are produced at the margin of the thallus. Their scales are well developed and stand upright; they are {{lichengloss|squamiform}} and described as mussel-shaped, because the base bends inward toward the thallus edge. The scale margin is entire and rounded, and the scales measure about 0.2–0.4&nbsp;mm long by 0.3–0.4&nbsp;mm wide; they are whitish in colour. [[Apothecia]] and [[pycnidia]] have not been reported for this species.<ref name="Ferraro et al. 2001"/>

==Habitat and distribution==

''Gyalectidium conchiferum'' has been reported from the [[Valdivian temperate forests|Valdivian temperate rainforest]] of southern Chile, where it grows on living leaves.<ref name="Lücking et al. 2003"/>

==References== <references>

<ref name="CoL_3HNNN">{{Catalogue of Life |id=3HNNN |title=''Gyalectidium conchiferum'' Lücking & V. Wirth |access-date=January 27, 2026}}</ref>

<ref name="Ferraro et al. 2001">{{cite journal |last1=Ferraro |first1=Lidia I. |last2=Lücking |first2=Robert |last3=Sérusiaux |first3=Emmanuël |year=2001 |title=A world monograph of the lichen genus ''Gyalectidium'' (Gomphillaceae) |journal=Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society |volume=137 |issue=3 |pages=311–345 |doi=10.1111/j.1095-8339.2001.tb01126.x |doi-access=free}}</ref>

<ref name="Lücking et al. 2003">{{cite journal |last1=Lücking |first1=R. |last2=Wirth |first2=V. |last3=Ferraro |first3=L.I. |last4=Cáceres |first4=M.E.S. |title=Foliicolous lichens from Valdivian temperate rain forest of Chile and Argentina: evidence of an austral element, with the description of seven new taxa |journal=Global Ecology and Biogeography |volume=12 |issue=1 |year=2003 |doi=10.1046/j.1466-822X.2003.00319.x |pages=21–36|hdl=11336/30980 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

</references>

{{Taxonbar|from=Q17387892}}

[[Category:Gyalectidium|conchiferum]] [[Category:Lichen species]] [[Category:Lichens described in 2001]] [[Category:Lichens of Chile]] [[Category:Taxa named by Robert Lücking]] [[Category:Taxa named by Volkmar Wirth]]