Concentric Boulder Lichen vs

Porpidia crustulata compared with Porpidia flavicunda

Key Differences

• Concentric Boulder Lichen is Vulnerable while is Data Deficient.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Concentric Boulder Lichen
Kingdom same	Fungi (Fungi)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum same	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class same	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)
Order same	Lecideales (Lecideales)	Lecideales (Lecideales)
Family same	Lecideaceae	Lecideaceae
Genus same	Porpidia	Porpidia
Species	Porpidia crustulata	Porpidia flavicunda

Evolutionary Relationship

Concentric Boulder Lichen and share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Porpidia.

Conservation Status

Concentric Boulder Lichen

VU — Vulnerable

DD — Data Deficient

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Concentric Boulder Lichen
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Concentric Boulder Lichen

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and United States. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

Concentric Boulder Lichen

<em>Porpidia crustulata</em>, commonly known as the Concentric Boulder Lichen, is a crustose lichen in the family Porpidiaceae formed through a symbiotic relationship between a fungal partner (mycobiont) and photosynthetic green algae (photobiont). Like all crustose lichens, it grows tightly appressed to its substrate—typically siliceous or acidic rock surfaces including boulders, cliff faces, and pebbles in open, well-lit habitats—forming thin, grayish to pale thalli marked by scattered black apothecia (reproductive discs). <em>Porpidia crustulata</em> derives nutrition entirely through photosynthesis conducted by its algal partner, requiring no external organic food source. The species has been documented in Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and the United States, suggesting a broad boreal to temperate distribution across the Northern Hemisphere. It is currently classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN, indicating significant conservation concern, likely linked to threats including air pollution, acidification, quarrying of rocky habitats, and changes in land use that reduce the availability of suitable substrates. Crustose lichens are typically slow-growing, long-lived organisms with limited capacity for rapid range shifts in response to environmental change. Biological traits such as individual lifespan, growth rates, and reproductive output remain poorly documented at the population level.

Porpidia flavicunda e um liquen crustoso com um talo areolado palido amarelado a cinza-esverdeado portando apotecios lecideinos escuros em rocha siliciosa. Habita faces de rocha expostas e acidas, rochedos e muros de pedra em ambientes temperados e montanos. Este liquen erosiona lentamente seu substrato mineral e contribui para a colonizacao de superficies rochosas.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden