New insights into the classification and evolution of Favolaschia (Agaricales, Basidiomycota) and its potential distribution, with descriptions of eight new species

Abstract

Favolaschia is a genus of poroid fungi in the order Agaricales with a worldwide distribution. Most studies of Favolaschia so far have characterized samples from South America and little information is available on samples from other areas. In this study, species diversity, phylogenetic relationships, divergence time, potential geographic distribution, and the environmental factors that determine the distribution of Favolaschia are investigated using a large number of samples covering a wide geographic range in China. Additionally, eight species, viz., Favolaschia bannaensis, F. crassipora, F. flabelliformis, F. rigida, F. semicircularis, F. subpustulosa, F. tenuissima, and F. tephroleuca, are described as new species based on morphology and molecular phylogenetic analyses inferred from a multi-gene dataset (ITS + nLSU + mtSSU + nuSSU + tef1). Morphological descriptions, field photographs, and an identification key are provided. Molecular clock analyses suggest that the common ancestor of Favolaschia originated in East Asia, and South and Central America and emerged in the Paleogene period with full support and a mean crown age of 32.0 Mya (95% highest posterior density of 24.9–41.7 Mya), with most species occurring in the Neogene period. The maximum entropy model (Maxent) is applied here to map the potential distribution of Favolaschia in the present and in the future, i.e., the 2050s, under four different climate change scenarios in China. The resulting model shows that the precipitation of the warmest quarter has the most important impact on the potential distribution of Favolaschia species. The suitability distribution areas of Favolaschia species markedly change in the 2050s under different climate change scenarios. Compared to current conditions, the extent of suitable areas for Favolaschia species in China are expected to increase in the future with lower greenhouse gas emissions.