Table 3.

Diagnostic characters in esorediate lichenized species with short ascomata

	X. bjoerkii	X. disseminata	X. erratica	X. hians	X. lagoi	X. opegraphella	X. trunciseda	X. vermicularis
Ascomata regeneration	two, regenerating from ends	two to multiple, regenerating from both ends of dead ascomata	mostly regenerating from one end and thus unidirectional	two to multiple, regenerating from both ends of dead ascomata	regeneration not observed	two to multiple, regenerating from both ends of dead ascomata	two, regenerating from ends	two, regenerating from ends
As coma length/width ratio (mean±SD)	2.66±0.86	2.43±0.72	2.84±1.18	1.84±0.89	-	2.56 ±1.04	2.22±0.48	2.19±0.57
Birefringence in exciple (POL+)	inner exciple	lacking	inner exciple	inner exciple to whole exciple	-	inner exciple	inner exciple	inner exciple to whole exciple
Hymenial pigments	brown and gray	±unpigmented	brown	brown, usually also gray, abundant in young portions of ascomata	brown and gray	brown and sometimes gray	pale brown	±unpigmented
Hymenial amyloidity	hemiamyloid	hemiamyloid	hemiamyloid	hemiamyloid	-	hemiamyloid or euamyloid	hemiamyloid	hemiamyloid or euamyloid
paraphysis terminal cells	expanded to 5 μm	expanded to 3 μm	scarcely expanded	scarcely expanded	expanded to 7 μm	expanded to 5 μm	expanded to 3.5 μm	not expanded, unpigmented
Mean ascospore length (μm)	11.6–13.2	15.9–18.2	11.0–12.2	12.1–13.5	9.5	9.4–11.3	10.1–11.3	12.2–14.1
Mean ascospore width (μm)	5.6–6.8	5.7–6.4	5.3–6.0	6.2–7.4	6	3.4–3.9	5.2–6.1	6.8–8.4
As cospore L/W ratio (mean±SD)	2.04±0.23	2.43±0.72	2.09±0.35	1.84±0.89	1.18–2.03	2.92±1.04	2.22±0.48	1.77±0.2
Thallus	sparse, immersed algal plugs	immersed algal plugs, breaking out into abundant granules	immersed algal plugs, sometimes developing areoles to 0.4 mm and distending wood fibres	immersed algal plugs	sparse, immersed algal plugs	variable, immersed algal plugs to robust surface thallus	immersed goniocysts	immersed algal plugs, sometimes developing endoxylic areoles and distending wood fibres
Gonio cysts	present	present (granules)	absent	absent	present	absent	present, immersed, very rarely surficial	occasionally produced in “soralia”
Major substances	confriesiic acid	fatty acids (major), confriesiic acid	stictic (norstictic)	stictic (norstictic)	thamnolic acid	norstictic and/or stictic acids	confriesiic acid	confriesiic and stictic acids
Distribution	Pacific North America	Eastern North America	Boreal, North America, Europe, Asia	Pacific North America	Spain	Northern maritime coasts	Boreal-montane, North America, Europe, Asia	Pacific Rim of Asia, North and South America