Nodulosphaeria spectabilis

Nodulosphaeria spectabilis (Niessl) L. Holm, Svensk bot. Tidskr. 55: 70 (1961)

Index Fungorum number: IF 335188; Facesofungi number: FoF 01894

Reference specimen: MFLU 15–1130

Saprobic on dead stem of Peucedanum cervaria (L.) Lapeyr., noticeable as black dots on host surface. Sexual morph: Ascomata 210 – 290 × 250 – 300 μm (x̄ =275 × 250 μm, n = 5), immersed or erumpent at maturity, solitary, scattered, subglobose to obpyriform, coriaceous, dark brown, without a subiculum covering the host. Ostiole papillate, protruding slightly from substrate, with numerous, internal brown to dark brown setae, protrude externally. Peridium 20–25(–43) μm wide, comprising 3–4 layers of dark brown cells of textura angularis to textura globulosa. Hamathecium comprising 2–3 μm wide, filiform, septate, branching pseudoparaphyses. Asci (95–)100–125 × 13–16 μm (x̄ = 110 × 15 μm, n = 20), 8-spored, bitunicate, cylindricsubclavate, slightly curved, with short bulbous pedicel, apically rounded, with an ocular chamber. Ascospores 30–42 × 5–7 μm (x̄ =38 × 6 μm, n = 20), overlapping 2–4-seriate, yellowish brown to brown, cylindric-fusiform, 4-septate, tapering towards the rounded ends, broader and constricted at second cell from the apex, with subterminal ridges, straight to slightly curved, guttulate, lacking terminal appendages. Asexual morph: Undetermined.

Material examined: ITALY, Forlì-Cesena Province, Passo delle Forche – Galeata, on dead stems of Peucedanum cervaria (Apiaceae), 16 July 2014, E. Camporesi (MFLU 15–1130/HKAS 90974, reference specimen designated here), living culture MFLUCC 14–1112, MUCL.

GenBank:

Notes: Our collection is identical to N. spectabilis (Niessl) L. Holm., which was introduced by Niessl (1872) as Leptosphaeria spectabilis Niessl. Important characteristics are the 4-septate ascospores, enlarged at the second cell from the apex and subterminal ridges or protuberance at both ends (Holm 1961). The type and our collection are from the same host family Apiaceae and from the same continent, but are from different hosts (Peucedanum cervaria in our collection vs. Laserpitium latifolium in the type). Therefore, we designate our collection as a reference specimen (sensu Ariyawansa et al. 2014b) for Nodulosphaeria spectabilis.