Paratricharia

{{Short description|Single-species fungal genus}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Use Oxford spelling|date=May 2025}} {{Speciesbox | image = | image_caption = | parent_authority = [[Robert Lücking|Lücking]] (1997) | taxon = Paratricharia paradoxa | authority = (Lücking) Lücking (1997) | synonyms_ref = <ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy"/> | synonyms = *''Tricharia paradoxa'' {{au|Lücking (1991)}} }}

'''''Paratricharia''''' is a single-species fungal [[genus]] in the family [[Gomphillaceae]].<ref name="CoL"/> It is [[monotypic]], containing the single species '''''Paratricharia paradoxa''''', a [[foliicolous lichen|foliicolous]] (leaf-dwelling) [[lichen]]. A two-gene [[molecular phylogenetics|molecular]] study published in 2024 showed that the genus sits in the ''Aulaxina'' [[clade]] and forms a strongly supported [[sister taxon|sister lineage]] to ''[[Caleniopsis]]'', well away from ''[[Tricharia]]'' and the other "black-setae" genera ''[[Microxyphiomyces]]'' and ''[[Santricharia]]''.

==Taxonomy==

Costa Rican material bearing robust, sterile black bristles (setae) was first described in 1991 as ''Tricharia paradoxa''.<ref name="Lücking 1991"/> Subsequent work recognised that its [[apothecia]]—tiny, disc-shaped spore-producing structures with a {{lichengloss|carbonised}} margin—and a unique sterile column ({{lichengloss|columella}}) in the centre of each {{lichengloss|disc}} did not match ''[[Tricharia]]'', prompting [[Robert Lücking]] to erect the new genus ''Paratricharia'' in 1997.<ref name="Lücking 1997"/>

Until recently the genus had not been sequenced, and its placement relied on [[morphology (biology)|morphology]]. Newly generated [[mitochondria]]l (mtSSU) and nuclear [[ribosomal DNA|ribosomal (nuLSU) DNA]] sequences resolved ''Paratricharia'' as sister to ''Caleniopsis''; together these genera form the earliest branch within a wider ''Aulaxina'' [[clade]] that also contains ''[[Aulaxina]]'' and ''[[Aulaxinella]]''. The study rejected any close relationship with ''Tricharia'' despite the shared presence of long black {{lichengloss|setae}}, confirming that these bristles have evolved several times independently inside [[Gomphillaceae]].<ref name="Lücking et al. 2024"/>

==Description==

The [[thallus]] (lichen body) forms a thin, pale green film on living leaves in humid tropical forests. From it arise two conspicuous features. First are the carbon-black, hair-like setae—sterile, thick-walled bristles up to several millimetres long that give the colony a spiky appearance. Second are the minute blackish brown apothecia. Each apothecium has a heavily carbonised, slightly raised rim (a {{lichengloss|zeorine}} margin) and encloses a central sterile column (columella), an uncommon feature within the family. The combination of setae and carbonised apothecia is diagnostic among foliicolous lichens.<ref name="Lücking et al. 2024"/>

==Distribution and ecology==

All confirmed collections come from lowland rainforests of Costa Rica, where the lichen grows on the upper surfaces of evergreen leaves. Like many foliicolous species it is thought to rely on frequent rainfall and high humidity for growth and spore dispersal.<ref name="Lücking et al. 2024"/>

==References== {{Reflist|refs=

<ref name="CoL">{{Catalogue of Life |id=63LTN |title=''Paratricharia'' |access-date=24 May 2025}}</ref>

<ref name="Lücking 1991">{{cite journal |last=Lücking |first=R. |year=1991 |title=Neue Arten foliikoler Flechten aus Costa Rica, Zentralamerika |trans-title=New species of foliicolous lichens in Costa Rica, Central America |journal=Nova Hedwigia |volume=52 |pages=267–304 |language=de}}</ref>

<ref name="Lücking 1997">{{cite journal |last=Lücking |first=R. |year=1997 |title=Additions and corrections to the knowledge of the foliicolous lichen flora of Costa Rica. The family Gomphillaceae |journal=Bibliotheca Lichenologica |volume=65 |pages=1–109}}</ref>

<ref name="Lücking et al. 2024">{{cite journal |last1=Lücking |first1=Robert |last2=Chaves-Chaves |first2=José Luis |last3=Moncada |first3=Bibiana |title=Apothecia trump setae: ''Paratricharia'' belongs in the ''Aulaxina'' clade and is distant from ''Tricharia'' (lichenized Ascomycota: Gomphillaceae) |journal=The Lichenologist |volume=56 |issue=6 |year=2024 |doi=10.1017/S0024282924000380 |pages=371–377|bibcode=2024ThLic..56..371L |doi-access=free }}</ref>

<ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy">{{cite web |title=Synonymy. Current Name: ''Paratricharia paradoxa'' (Lücking) Lücking, Biblthca Lichenol. 65: 77 (1997) |url=https://www.speciesfungorum.org/Names/SynSpecies.asp?RecordID=436308 |publisher=[[Species Fungorum]] |access-date=24 May 2025}}</ref>

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[[Category:Gomphillaceae]] [[Category:Lichen genera]] [[Category:Graphidales genera]] [[Category:Taxa named by Robert Lücking]] [[Category:Taxa described in 1997]]