Strigulaceae
| Strigulaceae | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Strigula species on plant foliage in Hawaii (possibly Strigula elegans) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Dothideomycetes |
| Order: | Strigulales |
| Family: | Strigulaceae Zahlbr., 1898 |
| Type genus | |
| Strigula Zahlbr. (1898) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Strigulaceae is a family of mostly lichen-forming fungi, one of two families in the order Strigulales (class Dothideomycetes). A molecular analysis of the type genus, Strigula, has led to a reallocation of the foliicolous species into six genera that correspond to well-delimited clades with diagnostic phenotype features. These lichens live almost exclusively in tropical rainforests, where they grow as thin films on the surface of living leaves rather than on bark or rock like many other lichens. The family includes around 140 species distributed across multiple continents, making them one of the most widespread groups of leaf-dwelling organisms. DNA studies have revealed that what scientists once thought was a single large genus actually represents several distinct evolutionary lineages.