Tremella laurisilvae J. Kout, 2015

Kout, Jiří, Quijada, Luis & Beltrán-Tejera, Esperanza, 2015, A new species of Tremella from Macaronesia, Phytotaxa 226 (1), pp. 75-82 : 77-79

Tremella laurisilvae J. Kout spec. nov. ( Figs. 1–7 ) MycoBank MB 812122

Corpus fructiferum gelatinosum , lobulis undulatis (cerebriformibus) atque erectis instar irregularium dactylorum (digitiformibus) et obtusis cornibus vel hastis compositum. Primum translucidum vel albidum colore, volubile usque ad aurantiacum marroninum pallescente, deinde marroninum atrorubellum in maturis exemplis. Basidiis subglobosis ad ample ellipsoidales, clausis parietibus, 14.3–20,2 x 9,9–14,2 μ (micras). Basidiosporis subglobosis ad ample ellipsoidales, 6.3–9,6 x 5–7 μm.

Type:— EUROPE. SPAIN. Canary Islands, Tenerife: San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Rural Park of Anaga, near Ermita de la Cruz del Carmen (Hoya de las Palomas), 916 m, 28º31’49’’N, 16º16’43’’W, on Morella faya with Biscogniauxia capnodes (Berk.) Y.M. Ju & J.D., 9 November 2014, J. Kout (holotype TFC Mic.24580! isotype J. Kout herbarium).

Basidiomata distinctive, gelatinous to cartilaginous, up to 7 cm in length, over 1cm high, cerebriform, erect (up to pseudostem) with finger-like or wavy lobes, which are variably shaped (apically tapering, branching dichotomous or with more projections), lobes hollow (may be filled by water), surface smooth (base delicately verrucose), shiny, whitish, light orange brownish to reddish brown, drying and turning brown at the edge, and darker at the base. Taste and smell not distinctive. Spore deposit white.

Immature basidiomata are lighter and transparent, mature basidiomata present the same characteristics in more humid conditions. The mature basidiomata become an amorphous slimy mass, the lobes collapse, apically lose colour and become ruptured. Flesh is homogenous, gelatinous, and darker at the base.

Hyphal system monomitic, hyphae with clamp connections (open clamps varying in size), often branched, occasionally inflated; narrow hyphae sometimes sinuous, smooth, hyaline, 1.8–4.9(–7.9) μm wide, thin-walled; subbasidial hyphae anastomosing, 4 μm wide; haustorial hyphae present. Catenulate cells frequently present in hymenium. Basidia 4-celled, longitudinally septate, hyaline, thin-walled, ellipsoid, pyriform, not stalked, with basal clamp connections, 14.3–20.2 × 9.9–14.2 μm; with 4 sterigmata up to 50 μm long, not swollen at apex (up to 2.5 μm diam.). Basidiospores hyaline, smooth, thin-walled, subglobose to broadly ellipsoid, apiculate, forming secondary spores, inamyloid, 6.3–9.6 × (4–)5–7 μm ( Q = 1.1–1.6). Conidia ellipsoid, 2.9–3.6 × 1.7–2.2 μm, hyaline, smooth, thin-walled; conidiogenous cells lacking clamp connections.

Remark:—Basidiomata start as small particles of brownish colour and develop into a compact cerebriform structure which forms fingered lobes. It appears to initiate inside of the Biscogniauxia ascocarps and then emerges through stromatic tissue.

Etymology:— The specific epithet refers to the ecosystem, the evergreen laurel forest, commonly called ‘laurisilva’.

Distribution and ecology: —Found in evergreen laurel forests of the Canary Islands and Madeira. Common on wood or bark of Ilex canariensis , Morella faya , Prunus lusitanica subsp. hixa , etc., parasitizing Biscogniauxia capnodes ; on trunks, attached or detached branches and twigs in the first stage of decay, when a knife does not penetrate more than two millimetres by force of hand (value 1 s., Renvall 1995), appearing even when the wood is still covered by mosses or lichens. It is a fungicolous species, whose development is linked to the presence of Biscogniauxia ascomata or in the areas near to the infected wood.

Further specimens examined:— SPAIN. Canary Islands: Tenerife, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Rural Park of Anaga, Galería Llano de los Viejos (near Ermita de la Cruz del Carmen), 904 m, 28º31’48’’N, 16º16’53’’W, on fallen trunks and twigs of unidentified hardwood, 6 December 2013, J. Kout (TFC Mic. 20862, duplicate in herb. J. Kout, KP226854). Idem, Cuadras de Don Benito, 848 m, 28º32’12’’N, 16º18’05’’W, on branch lying on the ground of Ilex canariensis , 14 December 2013, J. Kout (TFC Mic. 19450, duplicate in herb. J. Kout, KP226853). Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Rural Park of Anaga, Llanito de las Vueltas (Vueltas de Taganana, near Casa Forestal), 795 m, 28º32‘35‘‘N, 16º13‘42‘‘W, on unidentified wood, 15 October 2013, E. Beltrán-Tejera et al. (TFC Mic. 24578). Idem, on detached branch of Ilex canariensis , 2 November 2014, J. Kout (TFC Mic. 24579, duplicate in herb. J. Kout). Idem, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Parque Rural de Anaga, near Ermita de la Cruz del Carmen (Hoya de las Palomas), 916 m, 28º31‘49‘‘N, 16º16‘43‘‘W, on fallen trunks, branches and twigs of Ilex canariensis , 9 November 2014, J. Kout (TFC Mic. 24581). San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Rural Park of Anaga, near Ermita de la Cruz del Carmen (Hoya de las Palomas), 916 m, 28º31‘49‘‘N, 16º16‘43‘‘W, on fallen trunks, branches and twigs of Ilex canariensis , 24 November 2014, J. Kout (herb. J. Kout). Idem, Galería Llano de los Viejos (near Cruz del Carmen), 904 m, 28º31‘48‘‘N, 16º16‘53‘‘W, on unidentified fallen trunk, 24 November 2014, J. Kout (herb. J. Kout). Idem, El Rio, path to Ermita Cruz del Carmen, 825 m, 28º32’20’’N, 16º16’33’W, on fallen trunk of hardwood, 16 November 2014, J. Kout (herb. J. Kout). Idem, Cruz del Carmen (near restaurant), Hoya Charco la Vieja, 943 m, 28º31’54’’N, 16º16’48’’W, on branch of Prunus lusitanica subsp. hixa , 16 November 2014, J. Kout (herb. J. Kout).

Other specimen examined: — Tremella wrightii . PANAMA. Santa Rita Colón, on dead wood, 9 August 2008, leg. A. Espinosa, A. Santos & O. López (4487), det. M. Piepenbring.

Phylogenetic analyses

The alignment consisted of 621 characters, of which 405 were parsimony-informative, 66 were variable, and 216 were constant. The MP analyses resulted in 3 equally parsimonious trees with 1614 steps each, consistency index (CI) = 0.55, retention index (RI) = 0.75. Only the Bayesian consensus tree is shown ( Fig. 8 ) because overall topologies of the MP, ML and BI analyses were identical.

Two sequences of T. laurisilvae (KP226853, KP226854) were 100% identical with a sequence of an undescribed species deposited in GenBank (JN053467). The three sequences of T. laurisilvae constituted a strongly supported clade (Ia, Fig. 8 : 100% MPBS, 100% MLBS, 1 BIPP) in the T. fuciformis group. The largest supported clade (Ia+Ib+Ic, Fig. 8 : 99% MPBS, 94% MLBS, 0.99 BIPP) corresponds to the T. fuciformis group and includes four species ( T. flava , T. fuciformis , T. globispora , T. laurisilvae ). It is divided in three well-supported subclades ( Fig. 8 , subclade Ia, Ib, Ic). Phylogenetically, the closest species to T. laurisilvae is T. globispora and they form a strongly supported subclade (Ia+Ib, Fig. 8 : 99% MPBS, 85% MLBS, 0.99 BIPP).

Figures

FIGURE 8. Bayesian majority-rule consensus tree. Bold branches were well supported by MP/ML/BI methods.

FIGURES 1–7. Tremella laurisilvae. 1) basidiomata, Tenerife, near Ermita de la Cruz del Carmen (Hoya de las Palomas), from holotype and other specimens, scale bars = 1 cm; 2) basidiomata,Tenerife, El Rio, path to Ermita Cruz del Carmen, scale bars = 1 cm; 3) longitudinal section of basidiomata, hymenium in upper part, scale bar = 100 μm; 4a–b) hyphal anastomosis, 4c–d) clamps; 5a–b) catenulate cells, 5c–d) basidia with sterigmata; 6) basidiospores; 7) conidia. Scale bars = 10 μm. Photos of basidiomata by J.Kout; photos of microscopics by L. Quijada.