lichenicolous fungus help

[diggleken]

Lichen raw amateur needs help! This from yesterday on Hazel (I think), then possibly Physcia spp Lichen - I have narrowed the pink bit down (probably wrongly!) to lichenicolous fungi Marchandiomyces corallinus or much more probably Illosporiopsis christiansenii.
A Sclerotial basidiomycete ? Marvellous phrase!
There are quite a lot of old, dark, non pink growths on the thallus too.

Dont know how common this might be, possibly under-recorded cos of size?
With a bit of Xanthia parietina on the same twig too.
Grateful for any help
Cheers
Ken

[diggleken]

Apart from the black dots, this is one of JennyS's from 2009 - looks similar to my non-red bits Jenny? Ooer.

Cheers
Ken

[JennyS]

Hi Ken,

The lichen in both photos (yours and that old one of mine) is Physcia tenella, though I never found out whether the black dots were a lichenicolous fungus or not.

Your pink blobby bits ( now how's that for a technical term) look very like a lichenicolous fungus I spotted on P. tenella and have provisionally identified as Illosporiopsis christiansenii, but until I stick my specimen in the post and get it confirmed I'm no wiser than you!

If you check AlanS's section on lichenicolous fungi
Alan Silverside's images of British lichens (index to lichenicolous fungi)
you'll find a link to Illosporiopsis christiansenii from his page for Marchandiomyces corallinus

[diggleken]

Hi Jenny,
yes, I went through your site and Alan's which led me to that conclusion, Illosporiopsis christiansenii, plus this was a fun one to find:
Life On An Oxfordshire Lawn: A lichenicolous fungus Illosporiopsis (syn. Hobsonia) christiansenii
Sure looks right (we cant both be wrong can we?) but needs microscopy.
I expect to get my hands on a microscope in March, so I know where this was, hopefully get a sample and look at it more closely.
So we'll stick with probable only then...................
Cheers
Ken

[JennyS]

we cant both be wrong can we?

Oh yes we can!