Rinodina maronisidiata

Rinodina maronisidiata is a species of corticolous (bark-dwelling), crustose lichen in the family Physciaceae, first described in 2018. Found at high altitudes in the Venezuelan Andes, it is characterised by its unique -covered and specific  morphology.

Taxonomy
Rinodina maronisidiata was formally described as a new species by the lichenologists Klaus Kalb and André Aptroot in 2018. The type specimen was collected in Libertador, Pico Espejo, Mérida, Venezuela, on tree bark in a mountain forest at an elevation of 4200 m. The specific epithet maronisidiata refers to the similarity of this species to an species of Maronina (family Lecanoraceae).

Description
The thallus of Rinodina maronisidiata originates as ochraceous to brown corticated, soon covered by a thick layer of and subsequently coalescing. Isidia are cylindrical, (i.e., covered with a cortex), and irregularly densely and repeatedly branched. They are ochraceous to brown, often mottled, dull to partly glossy, and measure approximately 50–80 μm thick and up to 0.4 mm long. The is  (spherical green algae), about 5–8 μm in diameter. are stipitate, 0.4–1.2 mm in diameter, with a medium to dark brown, mostly flat, dull. The margin, ochraceous with a yellowish tinge, is usually much higher than the disc. The is hyaline (translucent), measuring 200–250 μm high. The is brown, and the  is hyaline. number four to eight per, and are dark brown with a single septum. They measure 31–36 by 13–16 μm and have rounded ends, thick walls, and angular. were not observed to occur in this species.

Chemical analysis of the thallus medulla (in the form of standard chemical spot tests) shows it to be UV+ (greenish white), C+ (orange), and K−. Thin-layer chromatography reveals the presence of arthothelin as the major lichen product.

Habitat and distribution
Rinodina maronisidiata is found on tree bark in mountain forests and at the time of its initial publication was known only to occur in Venezuela.