Cora squamiformis

Cora squamiformis is a species of basidiolichen in the family Hygrophoraceae. Found in the high Andes of South America, it was formally described as a new species in 2013 by Karina Wilk, Robert Lücking, and Alba Yánez-Ayabaca. The type specimen was collected in Madidi National Park at an altitude of 4677 m. The lichen occurs in Bolivia and Ecuador, where it grows on the ground between bryophytes amongst high-mountain vegetation. It forms olive-grey to grey thalli up to 3 cm across, each typically comprising 3 to 5 semicircular lobes. The specific epithet squamiformis  refers to the squamulose (scaley) appearance of the thallus. A close relative, Cora pavonia, occurs in the same habitat in Ecuador; it has much larger thalli and a different lobe configuration than C. squamiformis.