Lücking Robert, Dal-Forno Manuela, Sikaroodi Masoumeh, Gillevet Patrick M, Bungartz Frank, Moncada Bibiana, Yánez-Ayabaca Alba, Chaves José Luis, Coca Luis Fernando, Lawrey James D
Science and Education, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL 60605;
Department of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030;
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Jul 29;111(30):11091-6. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1403517111. Epub 2014 Jun 30.
The number of Fungi is estimated at between 1.5 and 3 million. Lichenized species are thought to make up a comparatively small portion of this figure, with unrecognized species richness hidden among little-studied, tropical microlichens. Recent findings, however, suggest that some macrolichens contain a large number of unrecognized taxa, increasing known species richness by an order of magnitude or more. Here we report the existence of at least 126 species in what until recently was believed to be a single taxon: the basidiolichen fungus Dictyonema glabratum, also known as Cora pavonia. Notably, these species are not cryptic but morphologically distinct. A predictive model suggests an even larger number, with more than 400 species. These results call into question species concepts in presumably well-known macrolichens and demonstrate the need for accurately documenting such species richness, given the importance of these lichens in endangered ecosystems such as paramos and the alarming potential for species losses throughout the tropics.
真菌的数量估计在150万至300万之间。地衣化物种被认为只占这一数字的相对较小部分，未被识别的物种丰富度隐藏在研究较少的热带微地衣之中。然而，最近的研究结果表明，一些大型地衣包含大量未被识别的分类群，使已知物种丰富度增加了一个数量级或更多。在此，我们报告，在直到最近还被认为是单一分类群的担子地衣真菌光面网衣（也称为雀石蕊）中，至少存在126个物种。值得注意的是，这些物种并非隐性的，而是形态上有明显区别。一个预测模型显示数量甚至更多，超过400种。这些结果对大概广为人知的大型地衣的物种概念提出了质疑，并表明鉴于这些地衣在帕拉莫等濒危生态系统中的重要性以及整个热带地区物种丧失的惊人可能性，有必要准确记录此类物种丰富度。
