Octospora oscarii spec. nov. (Pezizales), a bryophilous ascomycete on the pleurocarpous moss Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans (Hypnales)

Abstract: Eckstein, J., Sochorová, Z. & Janošík, L. 2021. Octospora oscarii spec. nov. (Pezizales), a bryophilous ascomycete on the pleurocarpous moss Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans (Hypnales). – Herzogia 34: 286 –298. The bryophilous ascomycete Octospora oscarii is described as a new species based on collections from Central Germany and the Czech Republic. It grows on the pleurocarpous moss Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans and is characterised by smooth ascospores and an infection on the rhizoids of its host. This is the first account of P. elegans as a host of bryophilous ascomycetes. Phylogenetic analyses of concatenated LSU, SSU and EF1-α gene sequences showed that the studied collections of this species form a well-supported monophyletic lineage differing from all previously studied species of bryophilous Pezizales. Macroscopic and microscopic features of the new species are illustrated by colour photographs and drawings, and are compared to those of the other species of bryophilous Pezizales similarly growing on pleurocarpous mosses.