Lepra erythrella (Pertusariaceae) – a new addition to the lichenized mycobiota of the Aotearoa / New Zealand archipelago

An investigation of the flora, mycobiota and lichenized mycobiota associated with the endemic Aotearoa / New Zealand plant genus Lophomyrtus (Myrtaceae) revealed a specimen of Lepra erythrella (Pertusariaceae). Lepra erythrella, though briefly mentioned in a paper documenting the results of that Lophomyrtus study, has not yet been formally admitted into the lichenized mycobiota of Aotearoa / New Zealand. Therefore, to complete that process in this paper, we provide a description based on the collection made from Lophomyrtus and a further one located in the Allan Herbarium (CHR). The addition of Lepra erythrella to the lichenized biota of Aotearoa / New Zealand highlights not only the lack of collecting of this genus in that archipelago but the need to critically examine that nation’s herbarium collections. We recommend that further research on this genus is carried out in our region.