Description: This tiny ‘jelly lichen’ requires some skilful searching at its Irish sites in the Burren and the Arran Islands. With a thallus about the size of a one-cent coin, the clues to the identification of this species in the absence of any isidia, the abundant red-black discs and the short radiating lobes with bulbous tips. Spores are short (13-22&

371;m) and broad (8-12&

371;m), three-septate to submuriform. It occurs on damp calcareous rocks and boulders. In the Burren, it can be found at the edges of turloughs.

Key Identification Features:

• Thallus small, cushion-forming, radiating, packed with discs; the olive-black lobes swollen at the top
• On damp limestone, and occasionally inundated limestone boulders.

Original text submitted by Vince J. Giavarini

Distribution Map from NBN: Enchylium confertum at National Biodiversity Network mapping facility, data for UK.

iNaturalist: Enchylium confertum at iNaturalist World Species Observations database.