Gerhardtia foliicola, a new record for Pakistan

Abstract

Gerhardtia foliicola is reported as a new record for Pakistan. The species is characterized by a reddish brown and hygrophanous pileus, densely crowded lamellae, small sized ellipsoid basidiospores with irregular outline and occurrence on leaf litter and humus in broadleaf forests. Our phylogenetic analysis based on nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (nrITS) region clustered the Pakistani collections in the same clade with G. foliicola sequences from Japan. Detailed description of macro- and micro-characters, habitat, general distribution, and diagnostic features important for delimiting G. foliicola from closely related taxa are presented.