BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides
mountain crab-eye
| Scientific Name: | Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides Leveille | ||||||||||
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| English Name: | mountain crab-eye | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | Esslinger, T.L. and R.S. Egan. 1995. A sixth checklist of the lichen-forming, lichenicolous, and allied fungi of the continental United States and Canada. The Bryologist 98(4):467-549. As supplied by USDA, NRCS from The PLANTS database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA. Version: November 19, 1997. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Lichen | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | ACROSPH | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G3 (Jan 2025) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S2 (Apr 2019) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Red | ||||||||||
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| COSEWIC Status: | Special Concern (Apr 2016) | ||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | 1 - Special Concern (Feb 2019) | ||||||||||
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| Global Habitat Comments: | Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides is found on rocky outcrops and conifer stumps and snags in mid to high-elevation forests, bogs, and alpine areas. Known host trees include juniper (Juniperus sp.), mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana), yellow-cedar (Cupressus nootkatensis), and Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis). (McCune and Geiser 2023, Consortium of Lichen Herbaria 2024, Environment and Climate Change Canada 2022). | ||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Elevation (m) (min / max): | Provincial: | ||||||||||
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | N | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides is widespread but rare in the western parts of North and South America, South Africa, and southern and eastern Asia (Bhutan, southern China, and Japan) (Tibell 1984, 1998). To date it has been reported in North America from Veracruz, Mexico, British Columbia, Canada, and Alaska and Washington state, United States (Nylander 1860, Goward 1999, Anderson 2012). A specimen from the Taimyr Peninsula in Arctic Siberia was reported in 1995 (CLH 2024). Range extent was estimated using herbarium specimens collected between 1960 and 2024 (CLH 2024). | ||||||||||
| Disjunct, more common elsewhere: | N | ||||||||||
| Peripheral, major distribution elsewhere: | N | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | Johnson, J. (2024) | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Oct 23, 2024 | ||||||||||
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| Last Literature Search: | |||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
Environment and Climate Change Canada. 2022. Management Plan for the Mountain Crab-eye (Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides) in Canada [Proposed]. Species at Risk Act Management Plan Series. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa. 2 parts, 4 pp. + 30 pp. https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/management-plans/mountain-crab-eye-2022.html |
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McCune, B. and L. Geiser. 2023. Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest, Third Edition, Revised and Expanded. ISBN 9780870712517 |
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2024. Species Summary: Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jun 5, 2026).