Ophiocordyceps nujiangensis H. Yu, T. Sun & W.Q. Zou, 2022

Sun, Tao, Zou, Weiqiu, Dong, Quanying, Huang, Ou, Tang, Dexiang & Yu, Hong, 2022, Morphology, phylogeny, mitogenomics and metagenomics reveal a new entomopathogenic fungus Ophiocordyceps nujiangensis (Hypocreales, Ophiocordycipitaceae) from Southwestern China, MycoKeys 94, pp. 91-108 : 91

Ophiocordyceps nujiangensis H. Yu, T. Sun & W.Q. Zou sp. nov.

Fig. 3

Etymology.

Nujiangensis, referring to the collection site of this species, Nujiang.

Holotype.

Yajiaoluo, Fugong County, Nujiang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. 98°52.20'N, 27°07.80'E, alt 1980 m, on the larvae of Hepialidae in soil, 6 June 2021, Hong Yu (YHH 20039, holotype; YFCC 8880, ex-holotype culture).

Sexual stage.

Stromata grew from the head of Hepialidae larva, solitary, certain branches at middle, gradually tapering from base to tip, woody, hard, dark brown (1545C, the number of PANTONE color, https://www.pantone.com), 14.8-18.2 cm long. Microscopic morphology to be determined.

Asexual stage.

Hirsutella . The colonies grew slowly on PDA, adding peptone (5 g/L) and yeast extract powder (10g/L) to PDA could accelerate the growth. Culturing at room temperature (16-20 °C) after 14 weeks, the colonies increased to 20-21 mm, hard, slight protuberance in the middle, pale gray (Cool gray 1 C), reverse black brown (Black 4 XGC). Hyphae hyaline, septate, smooth-walled. Conidiogenous cells hyaline, solitary, 54.9-76.5 (AVE = 50.50 ± 0.24) µm long, gradually tapering, base width 3.6-4.9 (AVE = 4.32 ± 0.11) µm, tip width 1.0-1.5 (AVE = 1.30 ± 0.11) µm, with warty protrusions from the middle to the top and more on the top, smooth-walled. Conidia hyaline, oval or fusiform, with smooth walls and mucinous sheath, 6.4-11.2 (AVE = 7.95 ± 0.15) × 3.7-6.4 (AVE = 4.73 ± 0.16) µm.

Host.

Larvae of Hepialidae .

Habitat.

Parasitized on Hepialidae larvae in the soil.

Distribution.

Yajiaoluo, Fugong County, Nujiang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China.

Other material examined.

Yajiaoluo , Fugong County, Nujiang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. 98°52.20'N, 27°07.80'E, alt 1980 m, on the larvae of Hepialidae in soil, 6 June 2021, Hong Yu ( YHH20040 , YFCC 8894; YHH 20041 ) .

Notes.

Ophiocordyceps nujiangensis was closely phylogenetically related to O. karstii and O. liangshanensis . The formation of stromata on the head of the host was a feature common to all three species. However, the length of the stromata varies between the three species. O. nujiangensis had a stromata length longer than O. karstii , but shorter than O. liangshanensis (Table 1 ). O. nujiangensis , on the other hand, had slightly longer conidiophores and slightly smaller conidia than O. liangshanensis (Table 1 ).

Figures

Figure 3. Ophiocordyceps nujiangensis A intact wild material B colony obverse on PDA with peptone and yeast extract powder C colony reverse on PDA with peptone and yeast extract powder D conidiogenous cells E-G conidiogenous cells and conidia H-L conidia. Scale bars: 3 cm (A); 2 cm (B, C); 20 µm (D-G); 5 µm (H-L).