Cordyceps changchunensis J.J. Hu, Bo Zhang & Y. Li, 2021

Hu, Jia-Jun, Zhao, Gui-Ping, Tuo, Yong-Lan, Dai, Dan, Guo, Di-Zhe, Rao, Gu, Qi, Zheng-Xiang, Zhang, Zhen-Hao, Li, Yu & Zhang, Bo, 2021, Morphology and molecular study of three new Cordycipitoid fungi and its related species collected from Jilin Province, northeast China, MycoKeys 83, pp. 161-180 : 161

Cordyceps changchunensis J.J. Hu, Bo Zhang & Y. Li sp. nov.

Figs 3 , 4

Holotype.

China. Jilin Province: Changchun City, Jingyuetan National Forest Park, 43.77°N, 125.47°E, 27 August 2018, Jia-Jun Hu, Bo Zhang & Gui-Ping Zhao (HMJAU 48251, holotype, GenBank Acc. nos.: ITS = MW893249, LSU = MW893274, EF-1α = MZ616769).

Etymology.

Cordyceps changchunensis : referring to Changchun, the location of the holotype.

Diagnosis.

Cordyceps changchunensis can be easily differentiated from closely-related species C. militaris by its unique host, smaller stromata, immersed perithecia and larger part-spores (2.6-6 × 1.0-1.4 μm).

Description.

Sexual Morph. Stromata 2.4-4.5 cm long, single or multiple, solitary to gregarious, arising from pupa; branched, sometimes single at base, then branched into two forks. Fertile apical portion, orange, clavate to globose, sometimes irregular, 2.0-3.5 cm long and 0.4-0.6 cm wide, distinctly distinguishable from the stipe. Sterile stipe fleshy, light yellow to orange, cylindrical, 1.3-3.3 cm long and ca. 0.4 cm wide, usually with white mycelium at the base. Perithecia immersed at right angles to the surface of the fruiting body, globose to ovoid, 180-600 × 180-520 μm, with a thick wall about 10-15 μm. Asci cylindrical, 80-300 × 2.5-5 μm, 8-spored, apex of ascus hemispherical, 3.0-4.0 × 2.0-3.0 μm. Part-spores oblong, 2.6-6 × 1.0-1.4 μm, smooth, hyaline in 3% KOH, thin-walled, inamyloid.

Asexual Morph. Unknown.

Host.

Growing on pupae of Lepidoptera .

Other specimens examined.

China. Jilin Province: Changchun City, Jingyuetan National Forest Park, 20 August 2015, Bo Zhang (HMJAU 48259, GenBank Acc. nos.: ITS = MW893251 , LSU = MW893276 , EF-1α = MZ616773 ); Changchun City, Jingyuetan National Forest Park, 18 August 2018, Bo Zhang (HMJAU 48252, isotype, GenBank Acc. nos.: ITS = MW893250 , LSU = MW893275 , EF-1α = MZ616775 ) .

Distribution.

China (Jilin Province).

Note.

C. changchunensis is easily confused with C. militaris due to highly similar morphology and sharing the same habitat. Morphologically, the stromata of C. militaris are larger than C. changchunensis , single or gregarious, larger perithecia (500-1089 × 132-264 μm) and smaller part-spores (2-4 × 1 μm) ( Li et al. 2015). In the phylogenetic analysis, the three specimens of C. changchunensis were placed in separate monophyletic lineages (BPP = 0.91, MLBS = 78%).

Figures

Figure 3. Morphological characters of Cordyceps changchunensis (HMJAU 48251, holotype) a, b, e stromata and host of Cordyceps changchunensis c surface of fertile apex of ascostroma d host of Cordyceps changchunensis f-h apex of ascus i-k ascus l-n part-spores. Scale bars: 1 cm (a, b); 2 mm (c, e); 1 mm (d); 10 μm (f-h); 50 μm (i-k); 5 μm (l-n).

Figure 4. Microscopical characters of Cordyceps changchunensis (HMJAU 48251, holotype) a perithecia b apex of ascus c part-spores. Scale bars: 100 μm (a); 5 μm (b, c).