Xanthoparmelia subruginosa is a species of saxicolous (rock-dwelling), foliose lichen in the family Parmeliaceae. Found in South Africa, it was formally described as a new species in 1986 by the American lichenologist Mason Hale. The type specimen was collected by Hale from the Oribi Gorge Nature Reserve (Natal) at an elevation of , where he found it growing on flat sandstone exposures back from a cliff. The lichen thallus, which is loosely attached to its rock , is bright yellowish green and measures in diameter. It contains stictic acid, constictic acid, and usnic acid.