Phacopsis vulpicidae

Phacopsis vulpicidae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Fungi
Division:	Ascomycota
Class:	Lecanoromycetes
Order:	Lecanorales
Family:	Parmeliaceae
Genus:	Phacopsis
Species:	P. vulpicidae
Binomial name
Phacopsis vulpicidae Zhurb. & Diederich (2019)

Phacopsis vulpicidae is a species of lichenicolous (lichen-dwelling) fungus in the family Parmeliaceae. It was formally described as a new species in 2019 by mycologists Mikhail P. Zhurbenko and Paul Diederich. The type specimen was collected by the first author near the headwaters of Ar Khordolyn gol River in Renchinlkhümbe Somon (Khövsgöl Province, Mongolia), at an altitude of 2,050 m (6,730 ft). There, in the upper limit of a Larix sibirica forest, the fungus was found growing on the thallus of a ground-dwelling Vulpicida juniperina lichen. The species epithet vulpicidae refers to the genus of its host. Infections by the fungus cause blister-like (bullate) swellings of the host thallus. It is known to occur in arctic and mountain tundra and taiga biomes of Asia, Europe, and North America (Alaska). Its only recorded host is Vulpicida juniperina, and almost all recorded host specimens have been terricolous.