Golden Cobblestone Lichen

Acarospora contigua

"Acarospora contigua" is a species of saxicolous, crustose lichen in the family Acarosporaceae. It was formally described as a new species in 1929 by Swedish lichenologist Adolf Hugo Magnusson. The dark yellow thallus has a continuous smooth crust comprising areoles that are 1–2.5 mm in diameter. In North America, it is known as the gold cobblestone lichen.
Curves and gold cobblestone lichen Acarospora contigua, the only known yellow lichen, is commonly found on granite in Wichita Mtns, Oklahoma. Acarospora contigua

Distribution

The lichen was reported from the Eastern Ghats India in 2021, where it occurs in tropical conditions at elevations between 500 and 1,000 m.

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Taxonomy
KingdomFungi
DivisionAscomycota
ClassLecanoromycetes
OrderAcarosporales
FamilyAcarosporaceae
GenusAcarospora
SpeciesA. contigua
Photographed in
United States of America