Parmelia encryptata A. Crespo et al. (Parmeliaceae, Ascomycota) is a cryptic species, morphologically indistinguishable from P. sulcata Taylor, which was previously found only in the Iberian Peninsula and Ireland. Here, we present first records of P. encryptata from Poland (Bia?owie?a Forest) and Switzerland with the discussion of its possible forest relict character and re-evaluation of its molecular data. Also the abundance and shape of rhizines in both species are discussed. The obtained results indicate that re-evaluated characteristics of P. encryptata should be used in its identification, i.e. seven nucleotide positions in nucITS rDNA distinguish P. encryptata from P. sulcata. Both species are morphologically and chemically identical, however the differences in the abundance and shape of rhizines is worth to be considered in P. encryptata recognition. The presence of P. encryptata in the Bia?owie?a Forest together with other locations in Killarney National Park in Ireland, the slope of the Iberian Mountain and the Swiss Alps suggests that P. encryptata can be forest lichen species, which probably maintained in isolated populations in large, well preserved forest ecosystems in Europe.
The research was supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, project no. 2012/07/N/NZ8/00061 granted to EO.
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