New studies on Apiospora (Amphisphaeriales, Apiosporaceae): epitypification of Sphaeria apiospora, proposal of Ap. marianiae sp. nov. and description of the asexual morph of Ap. sichuanensis

Abstract

In the present work, an epitype for Sphaeria apiospora, the basionym of the type species of the genus Apiospora, Apiospora montagnei, is selected among collections growing in the host plant species reported in the original protologue, Arundo micrantha. Most samples obtained from localities near that of the lectotype (Perpignan, France) belong to the same species, which is not significantly different from the clade previously named Ap. phragmitis, suggesting that this name is a later synonym of Ap. montagnei. In addition, the name Ap. marianiae is here proposed to accommodate a newly discovered species found in the Balearic Islands (Spain), and the asexual state of Ap. sichuanensis is described for the first time from samples growing in the same islands.