Primary squamules small, persistent or disappearing, narrow, rather delicate, thin and brittle, 1-3 × 1 mm, subdigitately lobed, linear or some-what cuneate or incised-lobed, inrolled, or concave or flat, ascending, upper surface glaucescent or rarely olivaceous, lower surface white, with-out soredia, or granular at margins, or sometimes squamules decomposing into sorediate masses. Podetia growing from upper surface of primary squamules, 5-50 mm tall to 4 mm diam., cylindrical or turbinate, very variable and irregular, with or without cups, shallow, corticate on inner surface, expanding gradually or abruptly, usually oblique and irregular with dentate or proliferating margins, sterile podetia simple or irregular and sparingly branched, tapering or cylindrical. Cortex continuous or areolate, or becoming decorticate and ± abundantly coarsely granular-sorediate, or with corticate granules and squamules, whitish-glaucescent or ashy to olive-glaucescent, inner cartilaginous layer well-developed, giving a translucent appearance to podetia after soredia and squamules are dispersed. Apothecia small, at apices of podetia, rarely on margins of cups, brown or red-brown. Chemistry: Cortex K- or + yellow, KC-, Pd+ red. Fumarprotocetraric acid, ± homosekikaic acid, ± atranorin.