Similar species are " Niebla arenaria " that differs by the absence of a holdfast and by terminal short bifurcate, or antler-like, branchlets, " Niebla effusa " that has terminal flattened, hooked, and fringed branches, " Niebla flabellata " that differs by the irregular-shaped branches mostly flattened above a short tubular base, " Niebla marinii " distinguished by the wide angled branching ( horseshoe-shaped ), " Niebla limicola " distinguished by shortly bifurcate branchlets along lower dilated branches, " Niebla pulchribarbara " distinguished by containing protocetraric acid instead of salazinic acid, and the acid-deficient " Niebla homaleoides ".
12.
They distinguished " Niebla pulchribarbara " from " Niebla homalea " and also from one other new species they described ( " Niebla josecuervoi " ) by the medulla reaction to " para "-phenylenediamine, depsidones ( pd + ), depsides ( pd-), while they also selected a different chemotype for each holotype ( biology ), protocetraric acid for " N . pulchribarbara ", salazinic acid for " N . josecuervoi "; however, the two new species were distinguished by the habit of the thallus, saxicolous with branches connected to a basal holdfast ( " N . josecuervoi " ), and terricolous, lying loose on sand ( " N . pulchribarbara " ).
13.
"Niebla josecuervoi " was first recognized by Phillip Rundel and Peter Bowler based on thalli growing abundantly on basalt ridge of Colina del Sudoeste, Bah�a de San Quint�n, 28 March 1971 as a new species of " Desmazieria " ( type specimen, salazinic acid, " Rundel & Bowler 250 ", Univ . Calif . Irvine, Fig . 3 ), It was one of two new species they described for the genus, the other, " Niebla pulchribarbara " ( as " Desmazieria " ), was distinguished by the absence of a basal attachment plate, and also by the absence of apothecia, while further noted in the descriptions of the two species to differ in their chemotypes, salazinic acid ( " N . josecuervoi " ), protocetraric acid ( " N . pulchribarbara " ).
