Sticta is a genusoflichens in the family Peltigeraceae. The genus has a widespread distribution, especially in tropical areas, and includes about 114 species.[2] These lichens have a leafy appearance, and are colored brown or black. Sticta species with cyanobacteria as photobionts can fix nitrogen from the atmosphere, and due to their relative abundance and high turnover, they contribute appreciably to the rainforest ecosystem. They are commonly calledspotted felt lichens.[3]
The vegetative bodies of the Sticta, the thalli, are foliose, or leafy in appearance. They typically have dimensions of 2 to 5 centimetres (0.8 to 2.0 in) in diameter, although specimens with diameters of up to 10 centimetres (4 in) have been recorded. The lobes are rounded, and the upper surface is black or brown, while the lower surface has a light to dark brown layer of fine hairs (atomentum), with a few craters, called cyphellae. Thalli often smell of shrimp or fish. The vegetative reproductive structures called isidiaorsoredia are often present on species in this genus; apothecia (cup-shaped spore-bearing structures) are rarely found. Sticta species are usually found growing on bark, wood, or mossy rock.[4]
Sticta species are primarily tropical in distribution, but some species have been reported from as north as Norway,[7] and as far south as the southern tip of South America.[8]
Most species of Sticta grow on bark, wood, or mossy rock, usually in humid areas.[4]
Some epiphytic lichen species may be used as "ancient woodland indicators"; they can used to quantitatively assess the degree to which a forest has had a long history of canopy continuity.[11] The presence of these species is a reliable indicator that the forest has existed back to early medieval times, without being clear-cut and regrown. Two Sticta species, namely, S. dufournii or the blue-green algal morphotypeS. canariensis, are among several species of lichens that may be used to calculate the New Index of Ecological Continuity (NIEC), considered the most sensitive and accurate determination of forest continuity.[12]
A comprehensive comparative study on the antioxidant activity of lichens from Hawaii and Iceland revealed the Hawaiian lichen S. weigelii to be a potent producer of antioxidative compounds.[13]
^Lücking, Robert; Nelson, Matthew P. (2018). "Ediacarans, Protolichens, and Lichen-Derived Penicillium: A Critical Reassessment of the Evolution of Lichenization in Fungi". In Krings, Michael; Cúneo, Néstor Rubén; Harper, Carla J.; Rothwell, Gar W. (eds.). Transformative Paleobotany. Papers to Commemorate the Life and Legacy of Thomas N. Taylor. Academic Press. pp. 551–590. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-813012-4.00023-1. ISBN978-0-12-813012-4.
^Jørgensen PR. "Sticta dufourii Del. and its parasymbiont Arthonia abelonae P.M. Jørg. n. sp. in Norway". Nova Hedwigia. 18: 331–40.
^Galloway DJ (1994). "Studies on the lichen genus Sticta (Schreber) Ach.: I. Southern South American species". The Lichenologist. 26 (3): 223–82. doi:10.1006/lich.1994.1019.
^Miadlikowska J, Lutzoni F (2003). "Phylogenetic classification of peltigeralean fungi (Peltigerales, Ascomycota) based on ribosomal RNA small and large subunits". American Journal of Botany. 91 (3): 449–64. doi:10.3732/ajb.91.3.449. PMID21653401.
^Stenroos SE, Stocker-Wörgötter I, Yoshimura L, Myllis A, Hyvönen TJ (2003). "Culture experiments and DNA sequence data confirm the identity of Lobariaphotomorphs". Canadian Journal of Botany. 81 (3): 232–47. doi:10.1139/b03-027.
^Aptroot, André (2008). "Sticta alpinotropica, a new saxicolous lichen species from the alpine zone of Mt Wilhelm, Papua New Guinea". The Lichenologist. 40 (5): 419–422. doi:10.1017/s0024282908007834.
^Dal Forno, Manuela; Moncada, Bibiana; Lücking, Robert (2018). "Sticta aongstroemii, a newly recognized species in the S. damicornis morphodeme (Lobariaceae) potentially endemic to the Atlantic Forest in Brazil". The Lichenologist. 50 (6): 691–696. doi:10.1017/s0024282918000403.
^ abcdefghijMoncada, Bibiana; Lücking, Robert (2012). "Ten new species of Sticta and counting: Colombia as a hot spot for unrecognized diversification in a conspicuous macrolichen genus". Phytotaxa. 74 (1): 1–29. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.74.1.1.
^ abcDi Meglio, Joseph R.; Goward, Trevor (2023). "Resolving the Sticta fuliginosa morphodeme (lichenized Ascomycota: Peltigeraceae) in northwestern North America". The Bryologist. 126 (1): 90–110. doi:10.1639/0007-2745-126.1.090.
^ abMagain, Nicolas; Sérusiaux, Emmanuël (2015). "Dismantling the treasured flagship lichen Sticta fuliginosa (Peltigerales) into four species in Western Europe". Mycological Progress. 14 (10). doi:10.1007/s11557-015-1109-0. hdl:2268/186416.
^ abcdefMoncada, Bibiana; Lücking, Robert; Coca, Luis Fernando (2013). "Six new apotheciate species of Sticta (lichenized Ascomycota: Lobariaceae) from the Colombian Andes". The Lichenologist. 45 (5): 635–656. doi:10.1017/s0024282913000376.
^ abcdGalloway, D. J. (1998). "Studies on the lichen genus Sticta (Schreber) Ach.: V*. Australian species". Bryophyte Diversity and Evolution. 15 (1): 117–160. doi:10.11646/bde.15.1.12.
^ abcdefghMercado‐Díaz, Joel A.; Lücking, Robert; Moncada, Bibiana; Widhelm, Todd J.; Lumbsch, H. Thorsten (2020). "Elucidating species richness in lichen fungi: The genus Sticta (Ascomycota: Peltigeraceae) in Puerto Rico". Taxon. 69 (5): 851–891. doi:10.1002/tax.12320.
^ abMcDonald, T.; Miadlikowska, J.; Lutzoni, F. (2003). "The lichen genus Sticta in the Great Smoky Mountains: A phylogenetic study of morphological, chemical, and molecular data". The Bryologist. 106 (1): 61–79. doi:10.1639/0007-2745(2003)106[0061:TLGSIT]2.0.CO;2.
^Lendemer, James C.; Goffinet, Bernard (2016). "Sticta deyana: A new endemic photomorphic lichen from the imperiled mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain of eastern North America". Systematic Botany. 40 (4): 933–941. doi:10.1600/036364415x689979.
^Nylander, W. (1861). "Expositio Lichenum Novae Caledoniae". Annales des Sciences Naturelles Botanique (in Latin). 15: 37–54.
^Upreti, D.K.; Divakar, P.K. (2010). "A new species in the lichen genus Sticta (Schreb.) Ach. (Lobariaceae) from the Indian subcontinent". Nova Hedwigia. 90 (1–2): 251–255. doi:10.1127/0029-5035/2010/0090-0251.
^ abcdefgMoncada, Bibiana; Coca, Luis Fernando; Lücking, Robert (2013). "Neotropical members of Sticta (lichenized Ascomycota: Lobariaceae) forming photosymbiodemes, with the description of seven new species". The Bryologist. 116 (2): 169–200. doi:10.1639/0007-2745-116.2.169.
^Galloway, D.J. (1983). "New taxa in the New Zealand lichen flora". New Zealand Journal of Botany. 21 (2): 191–199. doi:10.1080/0028825X.1983.10428544.
^Øvstedal, D.O.; Gremmen, N.J.M. (2010). "New lichen species from Tristan da Cunha and Gough Island". Folia Cryptogamica Estonica. 47: 43–49.
^Simon, A.; Goward, T.; Di Meglio, J.; Dillman, K.; Spribille, T.; Goffinet, B. (2018). "Sticta torii sp. nov., a remarkable lichen of high conservation priority from northwestern North America". Graphis Scripta. 30 (6): 105–114.
^Suárez, Alejandra; Lücking, Robert (2013). "Sticta viviana (lichenized Ascomycota: Peltigerales: Lobariaceae), a new species from Colombian paramos". The Lichenologist. 45 (2): 153–157. doi:10.1017/s0024282912000680.
