Van Vooren N., Lindemann U., Healy R.
Vol. 9 (4) – 19 July 2017
doi: 10.25664/art-0204
Open Access
Abstract: Tricharina is one of the most difficult genera of Pezizales because it is hard to distinguish morphologically among species. To provide a more robust taxonomy, new investigations on the genus were conducted, both morphologically and phylogenetically. This study focuses on the four key species of the genus: T. ascophanoides, T. gilva, T. ochroleuca and T. praecox. The type material of these species was reviewed. In the literature, T. gilva is considered to be close or even identical to T. ochroleuca. The phylogenetic analysis shows that all recent collections identified as T. ochroleuca appear to be T. gilva. Furthermore, the morphological study of the type material of T. ochroleuca leads to the conclusion that the name is a nomen dubium. The presence of several endophytes sequences in the Tricharina-core clade suggests that this genus has an endophytic lifecycle. The confusion between T. gilva and T. praecox, both considered as pyrophilous species, is now resolved thanks to phylogenetic analyses and new data based on vital taxonomy. In contrast to T. gilva, which can occasionally grow on burnt places, T. praecox is a strictly pyrophilous taxon and belongs genetically to a different clade than T. gilva. In agreement with art. 59 of ICN, the anamorphic genus Ascorhizoctonia is used to accommodate the species belonging to the “T. praecox clade”. T. ascophanoides, an extra-limital species, is excluded from the genus Tricharina and combined in the genus Cupulina based on the phylogenetic results. The genetic exploration of some other tricharinoid species, i.e. Leucoscypha semi-immersa and L. patavina, confirms they do not belong to the genus Leucoscypha in its original sense, and deserve their own genus. The name Sepultariella is validated to accommodate the latter
The genus Tricharina is a member of Pezizales and was proposed as a new name by Eckblad (1968: 60) replacing Tricharia Boud., an illegitimate name. The latter was first published by Boudier (1885) in his “tribu Cupulés, groupe Lachnés” for species [...]