Ophiocordyceps furcatosubulata H. Yu, Y. Wang & Y.B. Wang, 2021

Wang, Yao, Wu, Hui-Juan, Tran, Ngoc Lan, Zhang, Guo-Dong, Souvanhnachit, Sisommay, Wang, Yuan-Bing & Yu, Hong, 2021, Ophiocordyceps furcatosubulata, a new entomopathogenic fungus parasitizing beetle larvae (Coleoptera: Elateridae), Phytotaxa 482 (3), pp. 268-278 : 273-274

Ophiocordyceps furcatosubulata H. Yu, Y. Wang & Y.B. Wang , sp. nov. ( Figure 2 ) MycoBank MB 836253

Etymology:— furcatosubulata , referring to the furcate and subulate sterile apices.

Holotype:— CHINA. Yunnan Province: Puer City, Simao District, Xinfang Reservoir (N 22°42′40.74″, E 100°57′27.81″), alt. 1348 m, on the larva of elaterid beetle buried in soil, 7 October 2019, Yao Wang ( YHH 17005, holotype; YFCC 904 , ex-holotype culture).

Sexual morph: — Stromata single, solid, yellow to brown, arising from the head of host, 40–80 mm long, 1.5–2.2 mm wide. Stipes clavate, slender, 1.5–2.1 mm wide. Fertile parts cylindrical, yellow to brown with dark brown ostioles, 7.2–14.1 mm long, 1.7–2.2 mm diam, often with a sterile apex. Sterile apices pale yellow, furcate and subulate, 2–6 branches, 4.0–8.0 × 0.5 mm. Perithecia immersed, long ovoid or pyriform, 289.6–405.8 × 87.0–159.2 µm. Asci hyaline, cylindrical, 138.8–202.5 × 4.3–6.0 μm. Apical cap prominent and thick, hemiglobose to taper, 4.2– 5.7 µm wide, 2.4–5.1 µm high. Ascospores hyaline, filiform, multi-septate, finally breaking into secondary ascospores. Secondary ascospores cylindrical, 3.7–5.3 × 1.3–2.0 µm.

Asexual morph: —Colonies on PDA growing very slowly, reaching 18–21 mm (19 ± 1.7 mm) diam after 3 months at 25 °C, hard, irregular swell or flat, white to grey, reverse pale brown. Hyphae hyaline, septate, branched, smoothwalled, 1.2–3.6 μm wide. Conidiophores cylindrical, 8.1–25.4 × 1.6–3.3 µm. Conidiogenous cells polyphialidic or rarely monophialidic, forming on conidiophores or side branches, hyaline, with a slender or subulate base, tapering gradually or abruptly into a thin neck, smooth-walled or verruculose, 3.5–15.8 × 0.9–1.7 µm. Conidia hyaline, solitary, aseptate, smooth-walled, broadly ellipsoid or ellipsoid, 1.5–2.5 × 1.2–1.9 µm. Chlamydospores present.

Host: —Larvae of elaterid beetles, 18.0– 31.3 mm long, 1.9–3.4 mm wide.

Other material examined: — VIETNAM. Nghe An Province: Pu Mat National Park (N 18°55′45.24″, E 104°35′20.26″), alt. 620 m, on the larva of elaterid beetle buried in soil, 28 April 2017, Yuan-Bing Wang ( YHH 17001; YFCC 902 ) ; LAOS. Oudomxay Province: Muang Xay County, Nagang Village (N 20°42′51.38″, E 102°5′44.48″), alt. 698 m, on the larva of elaterid beetle buried in soil, 29 July 2019, Yao Wang ( YHH 17003; YFCC 903 ) ; CHINA. Yunnan Province: Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Xishuangbanna, Mengla County, Mohan (N 21°10′54.15″, E 101°43′30.71″), alt. 879 m, on the larva of elaterid beetle buried in soil, 5 October 2019, Hong Yu ( YHH 17006) .

Known distribution:— China, Vietnam and Laos.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Morphology of Ophiocordyceps furcatosubulata.a. Stroma arising from the larva of elaterid beetle buried in soil. b–c. Mature and immature stromata on larvae of elaterid beetle. d. Fertile part with immersed perithecia and a furcate sterile apex. e. The host of O. furcatosubulata; f. Front view of perithecia. g–j. Asci. k. Secondary ascospores. l. Colony on PDA. m–o. Conidiophores, conidiogenous cells and conidia. p. Chlamydospores. Scale bars: a, d–e = 5 mm; b–c, l = 10 mm; f = 500 μm; g–i = 50 μm; j–k = 5 μm; m = 10 μm; n-o = 4 μm; p = 20 μm.