Lichenologist 40, 5: 372 (2008).
Basionym: Ramonia azorica P. James & Purvis, in Purvis & James, Arquipélago, Ciências Biológicas e Marinhas 11A: 11 (1993).
Protologue type data: Typus: Azores: Faial: Caldera, alongside track from Canto dos Saquinhos, alt. ca. 800 m, [site 31], 14 April 1992, O. W. Purvis & P. W. James (Terceira) - holotypus (Fig. 7); (BM) - isotypus.
Type locality: Portugal, Azores, Faial, Caldera, alongside track from Canto dos Saquinhos, [site 31], ca. 800 m, 14 April 1992, O. W. Purvis & P. W. James (AZU - holotypus; BM - isotype).
Type locality coordinates: 38°34'37"N, 28°42'10"W; 38.576944°, -28.702778°.
ITS barcode: Data lacking.
Description: Lichen. Thallus crustose, + immersed in bark or encrusting mosses, very thin, membranous to subgelatinous, + continuous, pale green-grey, smooth, + shiny; prothallus absent. Hyphae thin, much branched, penetrating moss leaf cells. Apothecia 0.3-0.7 mm diam., + globose, + elevated when on bark, gyalectoid, numerous, mostly discrete, rarely 1-3 contiguous, often rather evenly spaced, adnate; disc deeply concave, partly to almost completely occluded and then poriform. True exciple of small, elongate, compacted, rather ill-defined cells, pale straw-coloured, surface very irregular, of necrotic cells intermixed with small crystal clusters (? calcium oxalate). Thalline exciple pure white in upper half, flesh-coloured below, scabrid, indistinctly radiately fissured or pleated; Hymenium 150-180 µm tall, paraphyses thin, ca. 2 µm thick, not swollen at apices, numerous, simple, conglutinated. Epithecium colourless, non-granular. Hypothecium thin, ca. 20 µm tall, + opaque, blackish. Asci 1-spored, narrowly cylindrical becoming ellipsoid. Ascospores (100)120-135(-140) x (27-)35-45 µm, oblong-ellipsoid with rounded apices, densely muriform, colourless; perispore absent (Purvis & James 1993: 11). Description also in Mangold et al. (2009).
Photobiont: Trentepohlia, cells 9-12 µm, in short filaments or + compacted (Purvis & James 1993: 11).
Chemistry: Two chemical races:
Ecology: Confined to Juniperus brevifolia in cloud forest, mainly on the sides or lower part of + horizontal branches, on bark or mosses.
Distribution type: Azores: Faial, Azores: Pico.
Taxonomy: Data lacking.
Note: When Topeliopsis azorica was described from Faial it was simultaneously recorded from Pico (Azores).
Distribution Database: Distributions
Distribution Database: Discover Life
Picture Database: Tropical Lichens
Molecular Database: Genbank
Synonym Database: Index Fungorum
Synonym Database: Mycobank
Race I: Thallus K-, C-, PD-; containing stictic acid (major), α-acetylconstictic acid (major or trace), hypoconstictic acid (minor or trace), hypostictic acid (minor or trace), cryptostictic acid (trace), hyposalazinic acid (trace) (Lumbsch et al. 2010: 218).
Race II: Thallus Pd-, K-, KC-, C- (lichen products absent) (Purvis & James 1993: 11). No lichen substances (Lumbsch et al. 2010: 218).