Niebla and Vermilacinia (Ramalinaceae) from California and Baja California.  
Spjut, R.W., 1996. ISSN 0833-1475, 208 pp.  
Sida, Botanical Miscellany 14. Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Inc.

Ridge S of El Marrón,
N of Punta Rocosa,
 Spjut 10000c

Cañon San Fernando,
Spjut & Marin 12732,
Apr 1993

Face of rock escarpment, southwest of Puerta Catarina, Spjut & Marin 13064, Apr 1994

Peak above Punta Rocosa, Spjut 10335, Mar 1988

Mesa Camacho,
Spjut & Marin 13053,
Apr 1994

Mesa Camacho,
Spjut & Marin 13090,
Apr 1994

Peak above Punta Rocosa, Spjut 10337, Mar 1988

San Miguel Island, CA
Grigarick & Schuster (COLO)
 

     Niebla sorocarpia is recognized for its appearance like “broccoli,”  a comparison I recalled having been made to a thallus that Charis Bratt had described to me during a phone conversation in which she indicated she saw an unusual Niebla growing on the face of large rock, somewhat out of reach, on one of the Channel Islands, and which she had also indicated she would hope that it would remain there as it was the only one of its kind she had seen in the islands.  The type collection was obtained from a vertical rock face on an outcropping of a ridge south of Punta Negra in Baja California Norte, the type locality is similar to that shown for Punta Rocosa on another page under Niebla communities.  Other associated species included N. josecuervoi (salazinic acid), N. homaleoides (acid-deficient), and N. infundibula (divaricatic acid).  An attempt was made at the time of collection to segregate specimens by morphological features, one of which was the aggregate bead-like apothecia on broadly rounded lobes, a feature now regarded as characteristic for N. sorocarpia.  The  epithet was chosen for the resemblance to sori of ferns.  Ainsworth and Bisby's Dictionary of the Fungi by Hawksworth, Kirk, Sutton & Pegler (8th ed., 1995) define sorocarp as “a stalked fruiting structure" and sorus as a “fruiting structure in certain fungi, esp. the spore mass in Uredinales and Ustilaginales, a group of fruit bodies.”

     Not all thalli with divaricatic acid and aggregate bead-like apothecia had broad lobes at the type locality.  Some had narrow lobes, while others with broad lobes lacked aggregate apothecia.  However, specimens from other sites, such as one in the Channel Islands where a specimen had been collected from San Miquel Island, are remarkably similar to the type.  Therefore, this species is reinforced by the same features showing up at different remote locations—in very similar habitats—on steep rock faces of mountain slopes or ridges. 

     For other species in Niebla, the occurrence of aggregate apothecia was not considered taxonomically useful as the development of apothecia varies.  One exception is N. cornea. When apothecia are present, they may be seen in small aggregates near the apex of a dilated lobe—with remarkable similarity among specimens from widely scattered locations, California mainland, Channel Islands and Bahía de San Quintín.  Specimens of this species without apothecia also appear quite similar at different locations.  However, N. sorocarpia, is recognized only by the presence of aggregate apothecia. Whether there are morphs without apothecia needs further study.  The broad thickened lobes of Niebla infundibula suggests a tendency towards development of aggregate apothecia, while other specimens of that species are recognized to lack apothecia.

     Aside from problems with some specimens from the type locality, N. sorocarpia is most likely to be confused with N. undulata.  Niebla sorocarpia is generally a bushy species, one with relatively large branches more than 6 cm in length, compared to shorter branches of N. undulata.  The best way to distinguish these species is to look at the tubular base, or the “stalk” of the “sorocarp.”  It is much longer in N. sorocarpia, relative to the upper “sorocarp lobes.”  Another species that may appear similar, N. lobulata, is distinguished by the presence of sekikaic acid.