Three new species of Dacryobolus (Polyporales, Basidiomycota) from southern China

Dacryobolus (Dacryobolaceae) is a brown-rot corticioid genus distributed mainly in temperate and subtropical regions. In this study, specimens of Dacryobolus collected on Pinus yunnanensis from Yunnan and Sichuan Provinces, southwestern China, were studied by morphological and molecular methods. As a result, three new lineages within the clade of the genus were recognized based on the concatenated ITS – nrLSU phylogenetic tree.

Accordingly, three new species, Dacryobolus caesius, D. odontoides, and D. yunnanensis, are described and illustrated for these new lineages. Morphologically, Dacryobolus caesius and D. odontoides have odontoid hymenophores and lack cystidia, whereas D. yunnanensis has smooth hymenophores and possesses thick-walled skeletocystidia. The taxonomy and phylogeny of Dacryobolus are discussed, and a key to all known species of the genus worldwide is provided.

This study enriches knowledge about the species diversity of Dacryobolus and brown-rot corticioid fungi in China.