Amandinea punctata (Hoffm.) Coppins & Scheid. forme corticole.

     Thallus: crustose, thin, smooth to rimose and often warted, sometimes areolate, relatively thick mainly towards the center (0.5 mm), matt with highly variable colours, pale grey,  brown-greenish, pale brown-greyish, kaki, grey-greenish; prothallus absent or vague and in that case, greyish. Apothecia usually numerous, 0.3-0.6 mm diam., superficial; disc flat, slightly convex to convex, rugose, blackish, black when dry, brown-black when moist, true exciple thin, unclear at first, then rapidly excluded. Ascospores largely ellipsoid, brown, usually slightly curved, 1-septate, 11-16 x 6-8 µm according to literature, 13-15 x 6-7 µm according to our measures. Photobiont: Chlorococcales. Chemical spot tests negative or K+ pale yellow. On nutrient-rich or enriched smooth bark of deciduous trees, wood, including fence posts, (see Amandinea punctata forme lignicole) less frequently on rocky substrata and debris, bird perching rocks in coastal zones. Easily confused with isolated specimen of Lecidella elaeochroma sometimes without black hypothallus but with a thallus more smooth and glossy, minutely cracked, celadon and usually C+ orange, and with exciple distinct and persistent, apothecia flat or less convex, black to dark blue. However in difficult cases microscopic observations are required to evidence simple ascospores.