Arthonia prominens

Arthonia prominens is a species of lichenicolous (lichen-dwelling) fungus in the family Arthoniaceae. Discovered on the Pacific coast of Chile, it was described as new to science in 2003 by Gerhard Follman. The holotype was collected in the supralittoral zone between Las Ventanas and Quintero, in the Valparaíso Province of Central Chile, at an elevation of about 10 metres. The fungus grows specifically on the thallus of Ingaderia gracillima, a fruticose lichen. The species epithet prominens (Latin for "projecting" or "prominent") refers to the swollen macules (spots) produced on the host's branches where the fungus's fruiting bodies aggregate. Arthonia prominens is characterised by its distinctive infection pattern, forming ash-grey, drab-coloured, or whitish raised macules measuring 1.2–2.5 mm in diameter on the flattened branches of I. gracillima. The fungus causes significant alterations to the host's cortical and medullary structure, disintegrating the normal hyphal arrangement. It......read more on Wikipedia.