Wikipedia:Today's featured article/February 19, 2024
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The Teloschistaceae are a family of mostly lichen-forming fungi with a cosmopolitan distribution, generally in temperate regions. Most either live on rock or on bark, and many are orange to yellow from anthraquinone which protects them from ultraviolet light, enabling expansion into arid and sunny ecosystems. They have a thallus that is leafy, bushy, or crusty, and partner with photosynthetic Trebouxia algae. A 2013 revision recognised three subfamilies and created or resurrected 31 more genera. Since then, many new genera have been added and DNA studies are giving insights into relationships within this family's more than 800 species and around 120 genera. It remains underexplored in vast regions like South America and China. Several rock-dwelling species are known to damage marble surfaces, and others are used in some traditional medicines. One member, Rusavskia elegans, is used in research as a model organism to investigate resilience against the harsh conditions of outer space. (Full article...)