Lecidea hassei

Lecidea hassei (Hasse's lecidea lichen) is an endolithic lichen that appears as tiny black, gray rimmed, plate-like or crinkled discs between crystals of rock in California.^[1] The main body grows inside solid rock, which is called being, and the crinkled discs above the rock surface are the sexual reproduction structures.^[1] It is endemic to California, where it only grows in the lower montane belt, including in deserts and chaparral. ^[1][2] It occurs in Joshua Tree National Park.^[3] The sexual reproduction structures (apothecia) are black, thinly rimmed (70-100 µm ) with unpigmented fungal tissue surrounding black discs in the middle, and up to 2.2 mm in diameter.^[1] They rise out of the rock in a flat to convex disc with a constricted base,^[1] giving the appearance of tiny raised plates. It grows in open areas on granite, schist, and other acidic rock.^[1] It resembles Lecidea laboriosa but produces schizopeltic acid as a metabolite, instead of 4-O-demethyl planaic acid.^[1] The name is from H.E. Hasse, who wrote the 1913 "Lichen Flora of Southern California".^[1] It is classified by the fungus as being in the Lecidea genus of the Lecideaceae fungus family.^[1] Lichen spot tests are negative on both the cortex and medulla (K-, C-, KC-, P-).

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