Protologue type data: Type: California, San Benito County, Pinnacles National Monument, east end of High Peaks Trail, chaparral habitat, on soil and organic matter, 365 m, 29 June 1991, Rosentreter 7241 (holotype, WIS; isotypes, BRY, SRP).

Type locality: USA, California, San Benito County, Pinnacles National Monument, east end of High Peaks Trail, chaparral habitat, on soil and organic matter, 365 m, 29 June 1991, Rosentreter 7241 (WIS - holotype; BRY, SRP - isotypes).

Type locality coordinates: 36°28'43.4"N, 121°11'9.84"W; 36.478724°, -121.186066°.

ITS barcode: Data lacking.

Description: Lichen. Thallus fruticose, creeping and attaching at several points along the lobes, less than 30 % of the thallus attached; lobes discrete, elongate, and stringy, up to 30 mm long, 0.5-1.2 mm wide, terete, tips typically single, unbranched; surface when dry is dull and irregularly white mottled, the color is whitish to gray-green and remains whitish in parts even when moist, pseudocyphellae lacking. Apothecia rare, 0.2-1 mm in diameter, immersed, disk black, occasionally pruinose on the disk, the margin is entire and colored like the thallus (whitish to gray-green), hymenium 60 µm thick; paraphyses are moniliform; spores 8 per ascus, subglobose 5.5 x 4 µm, or occasionally 6 per ascus and then 10 x 7 µm diameter.(Rosentreter 1998: 165).

Photobiont: Green alga.

Chemistry: Cortex KOH+ red, P+ orange, C-, KC-, norstictic acid (Rosentreter 1998: 165).

Ecology: On organic matter, rock, moss and litter, in chaparral habitats (Rosentreter 1998: 165).

Distribution type: California.

Taxonomy: This species is similar to A. reptans but differs in that the thallus is more fruticose, the cortex is KOH+ red, and the spores are typically 8 per ascus. Aspicilia californica has subglobose spores that are smaller (5.5 x 4 µm) than those of A. reptans (10 µm). When dry, the thallus surface of A. californica is generally more whitish than in A. reptans of A. filiformis, and the color is little changed when moist, unlike the latter two, which turn bright to dull green when moist (Rosentreter 1998: 165).

Note:

Distribution Database: Distributions

Distribution Database: Discover Life

Picture Database: Tropical Lichens

Molecular Database: Genbank

Synonym Database: Index Fungorum

Synonym Database: Mycobank