Genea mexicana, sp. nov., and Geopora tolucana, sp. nov., new hypogeous Pyronemataceae from Mexico, and the taxonomy of Geopora reevaluated

• Published in: Mycological progress Vol. 11; no. 3; pp. 711 - 724
• Main Authors: Guevara-Guerrero, Gonzalo, Stielow, Benjamin, Tamm, Heidi, Cázares-Gonzalez, Efrén, Göker, Markus
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer-Verlag 01.08.2012
• Subjects: ascocarp; ascospores; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Bromus; Ecology; Geopora; host preferences; internal transcribed spacers; Life Sciences; Microbiology; new species; Original Article; Plant Sciences; sequence analysis; tropical montane cloud forests; Mexico; Cryptic species; Phylogeny; Taxonomy; Tropical mycology
• ISSN: 1617-416X; 1861-8952
• DOI: 10.1007/s11557-011-0781-y

Two new species of hypogeous Pezizales in the Pyronemataceae are described from montane cloud forests in Mexico. Genea mexicana can be recognised by ITS sequence analysis and its distinct spore and seta dimensions; Geopora tolucana by ITS sequence analysis and its light brown hymenium, broadly ellipsoid ascospores and host preference. It belongs to the group of Geopora cooperi Harkn., which appears to be a rather heterogeneous assemblage, comprising a number of cryptic species. Our results indicate that the genus Geopora is non-monophyletic, occurring in two distinct phylogenetic clusters comprising species with either epigeous apothecial or hypogeous ptychothecial ascomata. Moreover, molecular divergence of Geopora is much higher than that of the neighbouring genera. Accordingly, we propose to reassign the cupulate apothecial Geopora species to the genus Sepultaria.