Entoloma mengsongense sp. nov. (Entolomataceae, Agaricales), a remarkable blue mushroom from Yunnan Province, China

Authors: ASENI NAVODA EDIRIWEERA, SAMANTHA CHANDRANATH KARUNARATHNA, JIANCHU XU, KEVIN DAVID HYDE, PETER EDWARD MORTIMER

Abstract: A new agaric species, Entoloma mengsongense, is described and illustrated from samples collected in Mengsong, Yunnan Province, China. Microscopic observations were carried out to describe the micro- and macromorphological characteristics of specimens, and molecular identification was performed to verify the novelty of the species. The species is mainly recognized by its conical to plano-concave pileus, with yellowish brown fibril and 4?8 × 4?6 µm sized, cuboid?quadrate basidiospores. Molecular phylogenetic analysis using ITS sequence data also indicated that this is a new species closely related to E. virescens and E. hochstetteri. Morphological and molecular phylogenetic differences separate E. mengsongense from all other known species of Entoloma.

Keywords: Basidiomycota, fungal taxonomy, Mengsong, molecular phylogeny, new species

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