Sticta

The vegetative bodies of the Sticta, the thalli, are foliose, or leafy in appearance. They typically have dimensions of in diameter, although specimens with diameters of up to have been recorded. The lobes are rounded, and the upper surface is black or brown, while the lower surface has a light to dark brown layer of fine hairs (a ), with a few craters, called . Thalli often smell of shrimp or fish. The vegetative reproductive structures called isidia or soredia are often present on species in this genus; apothecia (cup-shaped spore-bearing structures) are rarely found. Sticta species are usually found growing on bark, wood, or mossy rock. partners of Sticta species include members of the green algae genera Chloroidium, Coccomyxa, Elliptochloris, Heveochlorella, and Symbiochloris. The liverwort genus Monoclea contains lichen-like organisms completely unrelated to, but readily confused with Sticta. ==Distribution and habitat==

Sticta species are primarily tropical in distribution, but some species have been reported from as north as Norway, and as far south as the southern tip of South America. Most species of Sticta grow on bark, wood, or mossy rock, usually in humid areas. ==Phylogenetics==

Phylogenetic analysis of small and large ribosomal RNA subunits has confirmed that the genus Sticta is monophyletic. ==Indicators of ecological continuity==

Some epiphytic lichen species may be used as "ancient woodland indicators"; they can used to quantitatively assess the degree to which a forest has had a long history of canopy continuity. The presence of these species is a reliable indicator that the forest has existed back to early medieval times, without being clear-cut and regrown. Two Sticta species, namely, S. dufournii or the blue-green algal morphotype S. canariensis, are among several species of lichens that may be used to calculate the New Index of Ecological Continuity (NIEC), considered the most sensitive and accurate determination of forest continuity. ==Bioactive compounds==

A comprehensive comparative study on the antioxidant activity of lichens from Hawaii and Iceland revealed the Hawaiian lichen S. weigelii to be a potent producer of antioxidative compounds. ==Species==

, North Carolina • Sticta acyphellata – Hawaii • Sticta alpinotropica – Papua New Guinea • Sticta andina – Colombia • Sticta antoniana – Hawaii • Sticta aongstroemii – Brazil • Sticta arachnofuliginosa – Colombia • Sticta arbuscula – Colombia • Sticta arbusculotomentosa • Sticta arenosella • Sticta atlantica – Europe • Sticta atroandensis – Colombia • Sticta baileyi – Australia • Sticta borinquensis – Puerto Rico • Sticta brevior – Colombia • Sticta brevipes • Sticta caliginosa • Sticta camarae • Sticta canariensis • Sticta caperata • Sticta carolinensis • Sticta ciliata – Neotropics; Africa; Macaronesia; Western Europe • Sticta corymbosa – Puerto Rico • Sticta cyphellulata • Sticta dendroides • Sticta densiphyllidiata – Puerto Rico • Sticta deyana – North America • Sticta diversa • Sticta duplolimbata • Sticta emmanueliana – Hawaii • Sticta fasciculata • Sticta filix • Sticta flavireagens • Sticta flavocyphellata – Australia • Sticta flynnii – Hawaii • Sticta fragilinata • Sticta fuliginoides – Continental Europe; Canary Islands; eastern North America; Colombia • Sticta fuliginosa – widespread • Sticta fuscotomentosa • Sticta gallowayana • Sticta globulifuliginosa • Sticta gretae • Sticta guilartensis – Puerto Rico • Sticta harrisii – Puerto Rico • Sticta hawaiiensis – Hawaii • Sticta henrici – Colombia • Sticta hirsutifuliginosa • Sticta howei – Australia • Sticta humboldtii • Sticta hypopsiloides • Sticta indica – India • Sticta isidiokunthii – Colombia • Sticta jaguirreana • Sticta laciniosa • Sticta latifrons • Sticta leucoblephara • Sticta limbata • Sticta lobarioides • Sticta lumbschiana – Colombia • Sticta macrocyphellata – Colombia • Sticta macrofuliginosa • Sticta macrothallina • Sticta maculofuliginosa – Colombia • Sticta marginifera • Sticta martinii – New Zealand • Sticta mexicana • Sticta microcyphellata – Colombia • Sticta minutula • Sticta myrioloba – Australia • Sticta nashii • Sticta neopulmonarioides • Sticta papillata – Colombia • Sticta parahumboldtii – Colombia • Sticta parvilobata – Puerto Rico • Sticta pedunculata • Sticta phyllidiifuliginosa • Sticta phyllidiokunthii • Sticta plumbeociliata • Sticta pseudohumboldtii – Colombia • Sticta pseudolobaria • Sticta pulmonarioides • Sticta riparia – Puerto Rico • Sticta rhizinata – Colombia • Sticta rubropruinosa – Colombia • Sticta rutilans • Sticta sayeri • Sticta silverstonei – Colombia • Sticta sinuosa • Sticta smithii – Hawaii • Sticta stipitata • Sticta subfilicinella • Sticta sublimbata • Sticta subtomentella • Sticta swartzii • Sticta sylvatica – continental Europe; Andes (Colombia) • Sticta tainorum – Puerto Rico • Sticta tatamana • Sticta tesselata • Sticta torii • Sticta tunjensis – Colombia • Sticta variabilis • Sticta venosa • Sticta viviana – Colombia • Sticta waikamoi – Hawaii • Sticta xanthotropa ==References==