Peltigerales is an order

Order (biology)

In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...

 of lichen

Lichen

Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...

-forming fungi

Fungus

A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...

 belonging to the class

Class (biology)

In biological classification, class is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, order, family, genus, and species, with class fitting between phylum and order...

 Lecanoromycetes

Lecanoromycetes

Lecanoromycetes is the largest class of lichenized fungi. It belongs to the subphylum Pezizomycotina in the phylum Ascomycota. The asci of the Lecanoromycetes most often release spores by rostrate dehiscence....

 in the division Ascomycota

Ascomycota

The Ascomycota are a Division/Phylum of the kingdom Fungi, and subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the Sac fungi. They are the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species...

. The taxonomy of the group has seen numerous changes; it was formerly often treated as a suborder of the order Lecanorales

Lecanorales

The Lecanorales are an order of mostly lichen-forming fungi belonging to the class Lecanoromycetes in the division Ascomycota. The order contains 26 families, 269 genera, and 5695...

. It currently contains two suborders, seven families

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 and about 45 genera

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 such as Lobaria

Lobaria

Lobaria is a genus of lichens commonly known as "lungwort" or "lung moss" as their physical shape somewhat resembles a lung. Lobaria species are unusual in that they have a three-part symbiosis, containing a fungus, an alga and a cyanobacterium, the presence of the cyanobacterium allowing nitrogen...

and Peltigera

Peltigera

Peltigera is a genus of approximately 91 species of lichenized fungi in the family Peltigeraceae.Commonly known as the dog lichen, lichens of Peltigera are often terricolous , but can also occur on moss, trees, rocks, and many other substrates in many parts of the world...

.

The fungi form lichens in a symbiotic

Symbiosis

Symbiosis is close and often long-term interaction between different biological species. In 1877 Bennett used the word symbiosis to describe the mutualistic relationship in lichens...

 relationship with one or two photosynthetic

Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is a chemical process that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight. Photosynthesis occurs in plants, algae, and many species of bacteria, but not in archaea. Photosynthetic organisms are called photoautotrophs, since they can...

 partners which may be a cyanobacterium such as Nostoc

Nostoc

Nostoc is a genus of cyanobacteria found in a variety of environmental niches that forms colonies composed of filaments of moniliform cells in a gelatinous sheath.The name "Nostoc" was invented by Paracelsus...

or a green alga such as Coccomyxa

Coccomyxa

Coccomyxa is a genus of algae, in the family Coccomyxaceae.-Species List:* C. arvernensis* C. astericola* C. brevis* C. chodatii* C. confluens* C. corbierei* C. curvata* C. elongata* C. gloeobotrydiformis...

. The majority of species contain just a cyanobacterium, a smaller number have both a cyanobacterium and a green alga while only a few species have just a green alga. The thallus of the lichen may be foliose (leafy), subfruticose (somewhat shrubby) or granular-squamulose (scaly). The thallus attaches to a surface by means of small root-like rhizines. In some species, the thallus may vary in appearance depending on whether it contains a cyanobacterium or a green alga. Sometimes these different morphs of a single fungus were formerly thought to be separate species.

The lichens occur worldwide, growing on bark

Bark

Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...

, moss

Moss

Mosses are small, soft plants that are typically 1–10 cm tall, though some species are much larger. They commonly grow close together in clumps or mats in damp or shady locations. They do not have flowers or seeds, and their simple leaves cover the thin wiry stems...

, soil or rocks in humid woodland

Woodland

Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...

. The greatest diversity occurs in the Northern Hemisphere although the family Lobariaceae

Lobariaceae

The Lobariaceae are a lichenized family of fungi in the order Peltigerales . Species of this family have a widespread distribution, particularly in the tropics and southern temperate areas.-External links:*...

 is most diverse in the Southern Hemisphere.

Members of the suborder Peltigerineae produce a wide range of secondary compounds, some of which are useful to humans in medicine and dyeing

Dyeing

Dyeing is the process of adding color to textile products like fibers, yarns, and fabrics. Dyeing is normally done in a special solution containing dyes and particular chemical material. After dyeing, dye molecules have uncut Chemical bond with fiber molecules. The temperature and time controlling...

. Former uses include using Peltigera canina (dog lichen) as a remedy for the bite of a mad dog and Lobaria pulmonaria

Lobaria pulmonaria

Lobaria pulmonaria is a large epiphytic lichen consisting of an ascomycete fungus and a green algal partner living together in a symbiotic relationship with a cyanobacterium—a symbiosis involving members of three kingdoms of organisms...

(tree lungwort) as a remedy for lung diseases because of its supposed resemblance to lung tissue.