Dangeardiella Sacc. & P. Syd.

Thambugala, Kasun M., Singtripop, Chonticha, Chunfang, Yu, Mckenzie, Eric H. C., Liu, Zuo-Yi, Chukeatirote, Ekachai & Hyde, Kevin D., 2014, Towards a natural classification of Dothideomycetes 7: The genera Allosoma, Austropleospora, Dangeardiella, Griggsia and Karschia (Dothideomycetes incertae sedis), Phytotaxa 181 (1), pp. 34-46 : 41-43

Dangeardiella Sacc. & P. Syd. , Syll. fung. (Abellini) 14(2): 683 (1899)

MycoBank: MB 1410

Saprobic on stalks and petioles of ferns. Sexual state: Ascomata black, clustered or loosely scattered, immersed to erumpent, subglobose or elliptical, uni loculate or sometimes multiloculate with very reduced partition walls, forming indistinct slit-like ostiole. Peridium thin, comprising a few layers of dark brown cells arranged in a textura angularis. Hamathecium composed of hyaline, hyphae-like, numerous, aseptate pseudoparaphyses. Asci 8-spored, bitunicate, cylindrical, short pedicellate with rounded ends. Ascospores overlapping biseriate, hyaline, straight, narrowly fusoid with sharp to narrowly rounded ends, 5–10 septate, constricted at the primary septum. Asexual state: Unknown.

Type species:— Dangeardiella macrospora (J. Schröt.) Sacc. & P. Syd. , in Saccardo, Syll. fung. (Abellini) 14(2): 683 (1899) MycoBank: MB 242089. FIG. 5 a–l .

≡ Monographus macrosporus J. Schröt. , in Cohn, Krypt.-Fl. Schlesien (Breslau) 3.2(4): 477 (1897) [1908]

Saprobic on stalks of ferns. Sexual state: Ascomata 160–270 µm high, 225−315 µm wide (x = 206 × 276 µm, n=10), black, clustered or loosely scattered, immersed to erumpent, subglobose or elliptical, with slit-like ostiole. Peridium 7−10.7 µm (x = 8.8 µm, n=15), thin, comprising a few layers, of dark brown cells arranged in a textura angularis. Hamathecium composed of numerous, 1–3 μm wide, hyaline, hypha-like, pseudoparaphyses. Asci 140−160× 14−17µm (x = 146 × 15 µm, n=20), 8-spored, bitunicate, cylindrical, short pedicellate with rounded ends and inconspicuous ocular chamber. Ascospores 55−63 × 6.7−8.7µm (x = 60 × 7.8 µm, n=30), overlapping biseriate, narrowly fusoid with acute to narrowly rounded ends, hyaline, straight, 7–9 septate, constricted at the primary septum. Asexual state: Unknown.

Material examined:— SWEDEN. Torne lappmark, Schweden, Berg Kebnekaise, on dead stalk of Athyrium alpestre (Athyriaceae) , July 1930, J. Lind (S-F215985!).

Notes:— Dangeardiella was introduced by Saccardo & Sydow (1899) as a monotypic genus to accommodate Dangeardiella macrospora , while Obrist (1959) introduced a new species Dangeardiella fusiformis . Barr (1987) placed Massarina in the Lophiostomataceae and proposed Lophiostomataceae , sensu stricto to accommodate Dangeardiella along with Massarina , Lophiostoma and four other morphologically similar genera ( Liew et al. 2000, Hyde et al. 2013). Hawksworth et al. (1995) included Dangeardiella in Dothideales , genera incertae sedis. According to the SSU gene phylogenetic analysis in Liew et al. (2000), a putative strain of Dangeardiella clustered in a separate clade in Pleosporales along with Melanomma pulvis-pyrius , Herpotrichia diffusa and Pleomassaria siparia . However, Liew et al. (2000) did not conclude any taxonomic placement for the genus as their study did not support the monophyly of Melanommataceae as described by either Barr (1987, 1990) or Hawksworth et al. (1995). Therefore they suggested further work was needed in order to resolve the taxonomy of the genus. Kirk et al. (2008) placed this genus in Melanommataceae , while Lumbsch & Huhndorf (2010) included Dangeardiella under Dothideomycetes, genera incertae sedis.

Dangeardiella comprises two species, D. macrospora and D. fusiformis Obrist ( Holm & Holm 1978, Hawksworth et al. 1995, Kirk et al. 2008). The ascomata of D. macrospora are larger and more conspicuous than those of D. fusiformis ( Holm & Holm 1978) . Dangeardiella shares some similar characters with Lophiostomataceae such as having superficial to semi-immersed, carbonaceous, ascomata, with slot-like ostioles, cylindrical asci and narrowly fusiform ascospores. We are unable to examine type material of D. macrospora as PAD will not loan specimens and thus therefore examined a collection by Lind in Petrak’s herbarium. Therefore we tentatively refer Dangeardiella to Pleosporales , genera incertae sedis mainly based on its similarities with Pleosporales and SSU phylogeny.

Sordariomycetes, genera incertae sedis

The class Sordariomycetes is one of the largest classes in the Ascomycota with more than ten thousand species ( Kirk et al. 2008). Members are characterized by perithecial or less frequently cleistothecial ascomata and inoperculate unitunicate or prototunicate asci ( Alexopoulos et al. 1996, Zhang et al. 2006). Lumbsch & Huhndorf (2010) classified over 100 genera under Sordariomycetes incertae sedis in the Outline of Ascomycota-2009.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Dangeardiella macrospora (S-F215985). a. Herbarium material. b–c. Ascomata on host surface. d. Section through ascoma. e. Section of the papilla. f. Peridium. g. Pseudoparaphyses. h–j. Bitunicate asci. k–l.Ascospores. Scale bars: d = 100 µm, e = 50 µm, f–g = 25 µm, h–j = 50 µm, k–i = 20 µm.