in Purvis & James, Arquipélago, Ciências Biológicas e Marinhas 11A: 9 (1993).
Protologue type data: Typus: Azores: Pico, Cerrado de Sonicas, ca. 200 m along track leading off road EN3 to aerial, alt. 900 m, 11 April 1992, O. W. Purvis & P. W. James (Terceira) - holotypus; (BM) - isotypus.
Type locality: Portugal, Azores, Pico, Cerrado de Sonicas, ca. 200 m along track leading off road EN3 to aerial, 900 m, 11 April 1992, O. W. Purvis & P. W. James (AZU - holotype; BM - isotype).
Type locality coordinates: 38°28'52"N, 28°22'2"W; 38.481111°, -28.367222°.
ITS barcode: Data lacking.
Description: Lichen. Thallus foliose, to 10(-20) cm diam., robust, forming wide-spreading rosettes; lobes to 1.5 (-2.5) cm wide, rounded and + ascending at apices and margins, + overlapping; margins sparingly indented, not crisped or with folioles; upper surface + matt or slightly shiny, grey or slightly brownish, without pruina, tomentum or slash-like cracks; lower surface blackish brown centrally, with poorly-defined, dark brown-black veins with frequent pale interstices especially towards centre of thallus, extending towards margins of lobes or with a 0.5 cm wide naked zone or with pale veins; rhizines 3-4 mm long, fasciculate, tufted, squarrosely branched, dark brown-black. Apothecai to 5 x 3 mm, red-brown, saddle-shaped, mostly on short extensions of lobes. Ascospores 55-82 x 3.3-4.5(-5.0) µm, 3- to 7-septate, fusiform to acicular, colourless (Purvis & James 1993: 9).
Photobiont: Data lacking.
Chemistry: 2 chemical races:
Ecology: On old decaying logs and amongst mosses on the lower part of tree trunks in cloud forest in the Lobarion.
Distribution type: Data lacking.
Taxonomy: ... (Purvis & James 1993: 10).
Note: When Peltigera melanorrhiza was described from Pico (Azores) in 1993, the species was simultaneously recorded from Faial and São Miguel. Four years later it was reported from Mount Jálama in western Spain, Province of Cáceres (Martínez & Burgaz 1997).
Distribution Database: Distributions
Distribution Database: Discover Life
Picture Database: Tropical Lichens
Molecular Database: Genbank
Synonym Database: Index Fungorum
Synonym Database: Mycobank
Race I: Tenuiorin, methyl gyrophorate, + gyrophoric acid, unidentified terpenoid with similar rf to methyl gyrophorate in solvent G, 15α-acetoxyhopan-22-ol (dolichorrhizin) (T2), + hopane-6α,22-ol (zeorin) (T3) (Purvis & James 1993: 10 Type material, Azores).
Race II: Tenuiorin, methyl gyrophorate, gyrophoric acid (trace), peltidactylin, 15α-acetoxyhopan-22-ol (dolichorrhizin), + hopane-6α,22-ol (zeorin) (trace) (Purvis & James 1993: 10 Type material) (Martínez & Burgaz 1997: 391 Spanish sample).