Pyrigemmula, a novel hyphomycete genus on grapevine and tree bark

Abstract

The anamorphic taxon Pyrigemmula aurantiaca gen. et sp. nov. is described and illustrated from specimens that were collected from the inner bark of living woody hosts (Vitis vinifera, Pyrus communis, Mespilus germanica, Platanus hybrida, Elaeagnus angustifolia) and plant debris in Hungary. The fungus is generically distinct in the nature of the pyriform, golden conidiogenous cell with a solitary terminal pore and the ellipsoidal, distoseptate, phragmoconidia that germinate from each end and that have a rarely noted internal hilum quite unlike the hilum of the conidiogenous cell. The new fungus is compared with the type species of a number of allied genera of hyphomycetes. Free spores of the fungus were trapped in air, honeydew sap and rainwater samples. Aerobiological studies showed that the spores are infrequent in the air, whereas their concentration increased with higher atmospheric pressure. Pyrigemmula aurantiaca lives in bark fissures and rarely becomes airborne and the spores are mainly dispersed by rain splash. © 2010 The Author(s).