# Pyxine sorediata

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Species of lichen

Pyxine sorediata Conservation status Secure (NatureServe)[1] Scientific classification Kingdom: Fungi Division: Ascomycota Class: Lecanoromycetes Order: Caliciales Family: Caliciaceae Genus: Pyxine Species: P. sorediata Binomial name Pyxine sorediata (Ach.) Mont. (1845) Synonyms[2] Lecidea sorediata Ach. (1814) Lichen daedaleus Sm. (1810) Parmelia sorediata (Ach.) Tuck.(1848) Placodium daedaleum (Sm.) Hook. (1833) Pyxine cocois subsp. sorediata (Ach.) Tuck. (1882) Pyxine cocois var. eschweileri Tuck. (1877)

***Pyxine sorediata***, commonly known as **mustard lichen**, is a widely distributed species of [foliose lichen](/source/Foliose_lichen) in the family [Caliciaceae](/source/Caliciaceae). It has a [subtropical](/source/Subtropic) to warm [temperate](/source/Temperate) distribution, and grows on [bark](/source/Corticolous_lichen), [rocks](/source/Saxicolous_lichen), and moss as [substrates](/source/Substrate_(biology)). *Pyxine sorediata* has been reported from regions of North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australasia.

## Taxonomy

*Pyxine sorediata* was first [scientifically described](/source/Species_description) in 1814 by [Erik Acharius](/source/Erik_Acharius) as *Lecidea sorediata*. In his brief account, Acharius mentioned the circular (*orbicular*) grey crust he described as wrinkled, folded, and overlapping, the spongy black underside, and the scattered [apothecia](/source/Apothecia). In his understanding, the lichen occurred only in North America.[3] [Elias Magnus Fries](/source/Elias_Magnus_Fries) erected the genus *[Pyxine](/source/Pyxine)* in 1825, assigning *Lecidea sorediata* as the type species,[4] although he did not formally propose a transfer to that genus.[5] [Camille Montagne](/source/Camille_Montagne) gave it its current name when he transferred it to *[Pyxine](/source/Pyxine)* in 1845.[6] A [common name](/source/Common_name) used in North America is "mustard lichen".[7]

The Scottish naturalist [Archibald Menzies](/source/Archibald_Menzies) collected a specimen from Scotland, which was later named by [James Edward Smith](/source/James_Edward_Smith_(botanist)) as *Lichen daedalus* in 1810.[8] Modern expert examination and chemical analysis of the specimen showed that the specimen actually belonged to *Pyxine sorediata*. This raised doubt as to the provenance of the specimen, as *Pyxine sorediata* is not found anywhere in the British Isles. The specimen posed a problem for [nomenclatural](/source/Taxonomy_(biology)) reasons, as its publication preceded that of Montagne's by four years, and in the [rules for botanical nomenclature](/source/International_Code_of_Nomenclature_for_algae%2C_fungi%2C_and_plants), Smith's earlier name has [priority](/source/Principle_of_Priority). For this reason, in 2004 [Jack Laundon](/source/Jack_Laundon) proposed to reject the name *Lichen daedaleus* to safeguard the name *Pyxine sorediata*, and to "avoid displacing a well-established lichen name for purely nomenclatural reasons".[9]

## Description

*Pyxine sorediata* has a [foliose](/source/Foliose_lichen) [thallus](/source/Thallus) that ranges in colour from dull bluish-grey to green-gray. The lobes comprising the thallus measure 1–2.5 mm wide, and are [pruinose](/source/Pruinose) at the tips;[7] they are in close contact, often overlapping.[10] The lobe margins also have white [pseudocyphellae](/source/Pseudocyphella), that contrast with the lobe;[11] they are concentrated on the lobe margins and are rarely on the [lamina](/source/Lamina_(leaf)).[10] The [medulla](/source/Medulla_(lichenology)) is light yellow to yellow, and this colour is sometimes present in the soralia.[10] The underside of the thallus is black to greyish black; it has small [rhizines](/source/Rhizine) that help attach it to its [substrate](/source/Substrate_(biology)). Structures called [soralia](/source/Soralia) are on the margins of the lobes, but sometimes form round patches on the lamina. The [soredia](/source/Soredia) (reproductive structures) are coarse and grainy with a dark grey colour; they tend to impart a grey colour to the central part of the thallus.[11] [Apothecia](/source/Apothecia) are quite rare in this species. The [ascospores](/source/Ascospore) measure 12–17 by 6–8 [μm](/source/Micrometre).[10]

*Pyxine sorediata* is the largest species of *Pyxine*.[7] It does not have any reaction to the standard [lichen spot tests](/source/Lichen_spot_test).[11] [Secondary chemicals](/source/Secondary_metabolism) reported from the species include [atranorin](/source/Atranorin) and unidentified [triterpenes](/source/Triterpene).[10]

### Similar species

[Phylogenetic](/source/Molecular_phylogenetic) studies have shown that the corticolous Chinese species *[Pyxine hengduanensis](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pyxine_hengduanensis&action=edit&redlink=1)* is closely related to *P. sorediata*. Unlike *P. sorediata*, which has a yellow medulla and soralia that develop marginally from fissures and then become laminal and disc-shaped, *P. hengduanensis* has marginal labriform soralia that develop from the centre of the pseudocyphellae, with grey to bluish-grey soredia and a pale yellow medulla.[12] Another lookalike is *[Pyxine endochrysina](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pyxine_endochrysina&action=edit&redlink=1)*, but that species has [isidia](/source/Isidia) that range in form from granular to finger-like.[13]

## Habitat and distribution

The lichen is widely distributed in northeastern North America.[7] It [grows on bark](/source/Corticolous_lichen), on [acidic rocks](/source/Acidic_rock), and on [moss](/source/Moss). In Europe, where it is generally rare,[14] *Pyxine sorediata* is typically collected from mossy rocks.[11] It has been recorded in the [Pyrenees](/source/Pyrenees), the [Caucasus](/source/Caucasus), in the [Uholka-Shyrokyi Luh primeval beech forest](/source/Uholka-Shyrokyi_Luh_primeval_beech_forest) in the Ukrainian [Carpathians](/source/Carpathians),[14] and from the eastern coast of [Lake Baikal](/source/Lake_Baikal) in Siberia.[15] Its northernmost European record is from the [Bavarian](/source/Bavarian_Forest)-[Bohemian Forest](/source/Bohemian_Forest).[14] In Australia, it occurs in areas with uniform tropical environments, subtropics, and warm [temperate](/source/Temperate) areas. Specimens from [Queensland](/source/Queensland) have been collected from elevations up to 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). *Pyxine sorediata* is also known from East Africa, Japan,[10] South Korea,[13] and China.[12]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-NS_1-0)** [NatureServe](/source/NatureServe). ["*Pyxine sorediata*"](https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.121406/). *NatureServe Explorer*. Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 5 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Species_Fungorum_synonymy_2-0)** ["Synonymy: *Pyxine sorediata* (Ach.) Mont"](http://www.speciesfungorum.org/Names/SynSpecies.asp?RecordID=403621). [Species Fungorum](/source/Species_Fungorum). Retrieved 26 January 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Acharius_1814_3-0)** Acharius, Erik (1814). [*Synopsis Methodica Lichenum*](https://books.google.com/books?id=QqI_AAAAcAAJ&q=Lecidea%20sorediata&pg=PA54) (in Latin). Lundin: Litteris et Sumtibus Svanborg. p. 54.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Fries_1825_4-0)** Fries, E.M. (1825). *Systema Orbis Vegetabilis* (in Latin). Vol. 1. p. 267.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Imshaug_1957_5-0)** Henry, Imshaug (1957). "The lichen genus *Pyxine* in North and Middle America". *Transactions of the American Microscopical Society*. **76** (3): 246–269. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/3223889](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F3223889). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [3223889](https://www.jstor.org/stable/3223889).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Montagne_1845_6-0)** Montagne in de la Sagra. 1842. Histoire physique, politique et naturelle de l'isle de Cuba. Botanique, Plantes cellulaires.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Brodo_et_al._2001_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Brodo_et_al._2001_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Brodo_et_al._2001_7-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Brodo_et_al._2001_7-3) Brodo, Irwin M.; Sharnoff, Sylvia Duran; Sharnoff, Stephen (2001). *Lichens of North America*. Yale University Press. pp. 617–619. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0300082494](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0300082494).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Smith_1810_8-0)** Smith, J.E.; Sowerby, J. (1810). [*English Botany; or, coloured figures of British plants, with their essential characters, synonyms, and places of growth: to which will be added, occasional remarks*](https://bibdigital.rjb.csic.es/viewer/11333/#page=1&viewer=picture&o=bookmark&n=0&q=). Vol. 30. London: R. Taylor. pp. 2089–2164, 402–403.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Laundon_2004_9-0)** Laundon, Jack Rodney (2004). "(1634) Proposal to reject *Lichen daedaleus* in order to safeguard the name *Pyxine sorediata*". *Taxon*. **53** (3): 832–832. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/4135461](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F4135461). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [4135461](https://www.jstor.org/stable/4135461).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Rogers_1986_10-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Rogers_1986_10-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Rogers_1986_10-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Rogers_1986_10-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Rogers_1986_10-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Rogers_1986_10-5) Rogers, R.W. (1986). "The genus *Pyxine* (Physciaceae, Lichenized Ascomycetes) in Australia". *Australian Journal of Botany*. **34** (2): 131–154. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1071/BT9860131](https://doi.org/10.1071%2FBT9860131).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Moberg_1983_11-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Moberg_1983_11-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Moberg_1983_11-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Moberg_1983_11-3) Moberg, R. (1983). "Studies on Physciaceae (lichens) II. The genus *Pyxine* in Europe". *The Lichenologist*. **15** (2): 161–167. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1017/S0024282983000250](https://doi.org/10.1017%2FS0024282983000250).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Yang_et_al._2019_12-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Yang_et_al._2019_12-1) Yang, Mei-Xia; Wang, Xin-Yu; Liu, Dong; Zhang, Yan-Yun; Li, Li-Juan; Yin, An-Cheng; Scheidegger, Christoph; Wang, Li-Song (2019). ["New species and records of *Pyxine* (Caliciaceae) in China"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6363720). *MycoKeys* (45): 93–109. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.3897/mycokeys.45.29374](https://doi.org/10.3897%2Fmycokeys.45.29374). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [6363720](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6363720). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [30733639](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30733639).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Wei_&_Hur_2007_13-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Wei_&_Hur_2007_13-1) Wei, X.-L.; Hur, J.-S. (2007). ["Foliose genera of Physciaceae (lichenized Ascomycotina) of South Korea"](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286110165). *Mycotaxon*. **102**: 127–137.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Malíček_et_al._2018_14-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Malíček_et_al._2018_14-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Malíček_et_al._2018_14-2) Malíček, Jiří; Palice, Zdeněk; Acton, Andy; Berger, Franz; Bouda, František; Sanderson, Neil; Vondrák, Jan (2018). "Uholka Primeval Forest in the Ukrainian Carpathians – a keynote area for diversity of forest lichens in Europe". *Herzogia*. **31** (1): 140–171. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.13158/099.031.0110](https://doi.org/10.13158%2F099.031.0110).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Budaeva_2007_15-0)** Budaeva, S.E. (2007). "Features of the distribution of widespread lichens of the eastern coast of Lake Baikal". *Siberian Journal of Ecology*. **14** (6): 1025–1031.

Taxon identifiers Pyxine sorediata Wikidata: Q10647736 Wikispecies: Pyxine sorediata AusLichen: 30019602 CoL: 4QYKT GBIF: 2609314 iNaturalist: 229702 IndexFungorum: 403621 IRMNG: 11206718 ITIS: 191019 MycoBank: 403621 NatureServe: 2.121406 NBN: NHMSYS0001495968 NCBI: 205639 Open Tree of Life: 546050 PLANTS: PYSO3 SpeciesFungorum: 403621 TaiCOL: t0043599 Lecidea sorediata Wikidata: Q77693647 CoL: 6P6K4 IndexFungorum: 450892 IRMNG: 10909856 MycoBank: 450892 Open Tree of Life: 5314879 SpeciesFungorum: 450892

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