Gibellula fusiformispora Tasanathai, Kuephadungphan & Luangsa-ard, 2020

Kuephadungphan, Wilawan, Tasanathai, Kanoksri, Petcharad, Booppa, Khonsanit, Artit, Stadler, Marc & Luangsa-ard, J. Jennifer, 2020, Phylogeny- and morphology-based recognition of new species in the spider-parasitic genus Gibellula (Hypocreales, Cordycipitaceae) from Thailand, MycoKeys 72, pp. 17-42 : 17

publication ID

https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/mycokeys.72.55088

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/85B98007-DE5B-5741-AEF0-4585383FA25A

treatment provided by

MycoKeys by Pensoft

scientific name

Gibellula fusiformispora Tasanathai, Kuephadungphan & Luangsa-ard
status

sp. nov.

Gibellula fusiformispora Tasanathai, Kuephadungphan & Luangsa-ard sp. nov. Figure 3 View Figure 3

Typification.

Thailand, Chiang Mai, Chiang Dao District, Ban Huathung; 19°420'N, 98°971'E; on Araneida attached to the underside of unidentified dicot leaf; 5 October 2012; K. Tasanathai, A. Khonsanit, W. Noisripoom, P. Srikitikulchai, R. Promharn (Holotype no. BBH 32918, ex-type culture no. BCC 56802, isolated from conidia) GenBank: ITS = MT477070, LSU = MT477063, TEF1 = MT503329, RPB1 = MT503322, RPB2 = MT503337.

Etymology.

Refers to the fusiform part-spores.

Description.

Spiders totally covered by the white to cream mycelial mat. A single synnema or synnemata in pairs cream to light brown, often darker than the mycelia covering the host, narrowing toward the apex and terminating in a swollen sterile tip with acute apex (Fig. 3a-c View Figure 3 ). Conidiophores arising laterally from the outer layer of synnemata, crowded, (23-)31-53(-83) × (4-)5.5-6.5(-7.5) μm, mostly verrucose, occasionally slightly roughed for very short conidiophores, abruptly narrowing to a slender apex and forming a globose to subglobose vesicle (Fig. 3c, i View Figure 3 ). Vesicles 6-7(-8) μm in diam, each bearing a number of metulae (Fig. 3j View Figure 3 ). Metulae obovoid to broadly obovoid, (7-)7.5-9(-10) × (4.5-)5-5.5(-6) μm (Fig. 3j View Figure 3 ). Phialides borne on metulae, narrowly obovoid, 7-8.5(-10) × 2-3 μm bearing fusiform to broadly fusiform conidia, (3.5-)4-5(-6) × 1.5-2(-2.5) μm (Fig. 3h, j View Figure 3 ). Conidial heads spherical, (31-)32-34.5(-37) μm in diam (Fig. 3j View Figure 3 ). Perithecia mostly appearing in pairs, ovoid, superficial with a loose covering of white to cream mycelia, reddish yellow, up to 1,000 μm in length, 320-350 μm in width (Fig. 3d-e View Figure 3 ). Asci 600-700 × 7-8 μm (Fig. 3f View Figure 3 ). Ascospores often disarticulating into part-spores. Part-spores fusiform, 12-15 × 2-3 μm (Fig. 3g View Figure 3 ). Granulomanus -like asexual morph absent.

Culture characteristics.

Colonies derived from conidia, on PDA slow-growing, attaining a diam of 1.1 ± 0.03 cm in 20 days at 25 °C, white, velvety; reverse cream, becoming light brown with age toward center (Fig. 3k View Figure 3 ). Sporulation not observed.

Additional specimen examined.

Thailand, Chiang Mai, Chiang Dao District, Ban Huathung; 19°420'N, 98°971'E; on Deinopidae ( Araneae ) attached to the underside of unidentified monocot leaf; 23 September 2010; K. Tasanathai, P. Srikitikulchai, A. Khonsanit, K. Sansatchanon (BBH 38838, BCC 45076 and BCC 45077).

Notes.

The sexual morph of G. fusiformispora is extremely close to Torrubiella ellipsoidea ( Kobayasi and Shimizu 1982) in producing slightly curved fusiform part-spores of maximum 3 µm wide, whereas those of G. fusiformispora are almost two times wider. Considering the Gibellula conidial state, G. fusiformispora resembled G. cebrennini by forming synnema with sterile swollen tip, aspergillate conidiophores and fusiform conidia. However, G. fusiformispora can be easily recognized by having much shorter conidiophores, and the production of more than one synnema on the spider hosts.