{{Short description|Single-species lichen genus}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}} {{Speciesbox | image = | parent_authority = [[A.Massal.]] (1860) | taxon = Pliariona montagnei | authority = ([[Roelof Benjamin van den Bosch|Bosch]]) A.Massal. (1860) | synonyms_ref = <ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy"/> | synonyms = *''Graphis montagnei'' {{au|Bosch (1855)}} *''Lecanactis montagnei'' {{au|(Bosch) [[Nyl.]] (1858)}} *''Graphina montagnei'' {{au|(Bosch) [[Müll.Arg.]] (1880)}}<ref name="Müller 1880"/> *''Phaeographina montagnei'' {{au|(Bosch) Müll.Arg. (1882)}} *''Thecaria montagnei'' {{au|(Bosch) Staiger (2002)}}<ref name="Staiger 2002"/> }}
'''''Pliariona''''' is a fungal [[genus]] in the family [[Graphidaceae]].<ref name="CoL"/><ref name="Wijayawardene et al. 2022"/> It comprises the single species '''''Pliariona montagnei''''', a [[corticolous lichen|corticolous]] (bark-dwelling) [[script lichen]] widely distributed across various [[tropical]] and [[subtropical]] regions.
==Taxonomy==
''Pliariona'' was originally [[circumscription (taxonomy)|circumscribed]] by the Italian lichenologist [[Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo]] in 1860,<ref name="Massalongo 1860"/> to contain a [[script lichen]] species that was originally named ''Graphis montagnei'' by the Dutch botanist [[Roelof Benjamin van den Bosch]].<ref name="Miquel 1856"/>
The genus ''Pliariona'' was reinstated in 2013 based on [[molecular phylogenetics]] studies that revealed distinct [[lineage (evolution)|lineages]] within the [[Graphidaceae]]. These studies showed that species previously grouped under the same genus due to [[morphology (biology)|morphological]] similarities were not always closely related.<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/> For example, ''Pliariona montagnei'' (formerly known as ''Thecaria montagnei'') and ''[[Thecaria quassicola]]'', despite their superficial resemblance, were found to be [[genetic distance|genetically distant]] and not [[Biological specificity#congener|congeneric]].<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/>
The reinstatement of ''Pliariona'' as a separate genus is supported by molecular evidence and key taxonomic characteristics that distinguish it from related genera. These distinguishing features include an {{lichengloss|epruinose}} apothecial {{lichengloss|disc}} (the spore-producing surface lacking a powdery coating) and a dark red [[hymenium]] (the fertile layer of the fungus).<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/>
==Description== ''Pliariona montagnei'' has a thallus that ranges in colour from olive to dull green, with a glossy appearance. The surface texture varies from smooth to warty, often reflecting the contours of the underlying bark {{lichengloss|substrate}}. The species is characterised by its numerous [[ascomata]] (fruiting bodies), which are {{lichengloss|sessile}} and {{lichengloss|lirellate}} in form. These reproductive structures are predominantly {{lichengloss|simple}}, though some display occasional branching, and measure up to 0.6 mm by 0.5 mm. The ascomata feature an open {{lichengloss|disc}} that is red and epruinose, surrounded by a well-developed {{lichengloss|exciple}}. This exciple is fully {{lichengloss|carbonised}} (blackened), measuring 130 to 250 [[μm]], and is covered by a thick, unbroken {{lichengloss|thalline margin}}.<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/>
The [[hymenium]], which measures 150–200 μm in height, is red-pigmented and densely {{lichengloss|inspersed}}. Within this layer, the [[ascus|asci]] (spore-bearing sacs) each contain a single [[ascospore]]. These ascospores are {{lichengloss|muriform}}, [[ellipsoid]]al to oval in shape, and measure 125–155 μm by 25–40 μm. Initially [[hyaline]] and non-[[amyloid (mycology)|amyloid]], the spores develop a brownish or [[mottling|mottled]] appearance as they mature. The species contains the compound [[isohypocrelline]], though the biological significance of this substance in ''P. montagnei'' remains unclear. The combination of these morphological and chemical characteristics distinguishes ''P. montagnei'' from other superficially similar species within the Graphidaceae.<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/>
==Habitat and distribution==
''Pliariona montagnei'' exhibits a wide distribution across various tropical and subtropical regions. The species has been documented in Australia, West Africa, Japan, the Philippines, India, Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, [[Vanuatu]], and [[Norfolk Island]]. It has more recently been recorded in Vietnam, specifically in [[Đắk Lắk province]], within [[Chư Yang Sin National Park]].<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/>
The species is [[corticolous lichen|corticolous]], growing on tree bark. In the Vietnamese location where it was observed, ''P. montagnei'' was found at an elevation of about 780 metres above sea level.<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013"/>
==References== {{Reflist|colwidth=30em|refs=
<ref name="CoL">{{Catalogue of Life |id=6SX5 |title=''Pliariona'' |access-date=13 September 2024}}</ref>
<ref name="Species Fungorum synonymy">{{cite web |title=GSD Species Synonymy. Current Name: ''Pliariona montagnei'' (Bosch) A. Massal., Atti Inst. Veneto Sci. lett., ed Arti, Sér. 3 5: 318 (1860) |url=https://www.speciesfungorum.org/GSD/GSDspecies.asp?RecordID=401667 |publisher=[[Species Fungorum]] |access-date=13 September 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 [161] |doi=10.5943/mycosphere/13/1/2 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/358798332|hdl=1854/LU-8754813 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>
<ref name="Joshi et al. 2013">{{cite journal |last1=Joshi |first1=Santosh |last2=Jayalal |first2=Udeni |last3=Oh |first3=Soon-Ok |last4=Koh |first4=Young Jin |last5=Nguyen |first5=Thi Thuy |last6=Dzung |first6=Nguyen Anh |last7=Hur | first7=Jae-Seoun |title=New species and new records in the family Graphidaceae (Ascomycota: Ostropales ) from Vietnam |journal=The Lichenologist |volume=45 |issue=5 |year=2013 |doi=10.1017/S002428291300025X |pages=599–609}}</ref>
<ref name="Massalongo 1860">{{cite journal |last=Massalongo |first=A.B. |year=1860 |title=Esame comparativo di alcune genere di licheni |journal=Atti dell'Istituto Veneto Scienze |volume=5 |pages=313–337 |language=la}}</ref>
<ref name="Miquel 1856">{{cite book |last1=Miquel |first1=F.A.W. |last2=Van den Bosch |first2=R.B. |chapter=Lichenes |year=1856 |title=Plantae Junghuhnianae |volume=4 |pages=427–494 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/612794 |language=la}}</ref>
<ref name="Müller 1880">{{cite journal |last=Müller |first=J. |year=1880 |title=Lichenologische Beiträge. X |journal=Flora (Regensburg) |volume=63 |issue=3 |pages=40–45 |language=la |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/65506}}</ref>
<ref name="Staiger 2002">{{cite book |last1=Staiger |last2=B. |year=2002 |title=Die Flechtennamilie Graphidaceae: Studien in Richtung einer natürlichen Gliederung |trans-title=The lichen family Graphidaceae: studies towards a natural organization |series=Bibliotheca Lichenologica |volume=85 |page=446 |publisher=J. Cramer |location=Berlin/Stuttgart |language=de |isbn=978-3-443-58064-3}}</ref>
}}
{{Taxonbar|from1=Q107289447 |from2=Q108263326 |from3=Q59587260 |from4=Q107901571 |from5=Q107708171 |from6=Q105498147 |from7=Q10695946}}
[[Category:Graphidaceae]] [[Category:Graphidales genera]] [[Category:Lichen genera]] [[Category:Taxa described in 1860]] [[Category:Taxa named by Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo]]