Turbo-taxonomy to assemble a megadiverse lichen genus: seventy new species of Cora (Basidiomycota: Agaricales: Hygrophoraceae), honouring David Leslie Hawksworth’s seventieth birthday

Abstract

Following a large-scale phylogenetic study of the lichenized genus Cora (Basidiomycota: Agaricales: Hygrophoraceae), we formally describe 70 new species, honouring the seventieth birthday of David Leslie Hawksworth, one of the preeminent figures in mycology and lichenology in the past 50 years. Based on an updated phylogeny using the ITS fungal barcoding locus, we now recognize 189 taxa in a genus that until recently was considered to represent a single species; including this contribution, 92 of these are formally recognized, including five taxa based on historical names or collections that have not been sequenced. Species of Cora can be recognized by a combination of morphological (size, colour, lobe configuration, surface hairs, hymenophore size and shape), anatomical (thallus thickness, cortex structure, photobiont type, hyphal papillae), and ecogeographical features (substrate, habitat, distribution), and a keytable allowing the identification of all accepted taxa is provided. The new species are: Cora accipiter Moncada, Madriñán & Lücking spec. nov., C. applanata Moncada, Soto-Medina & Lücking spec. nov., C. arachnodavidea Moncada, Dal Forno & Lücking spec. nov., C. arborescens Dal Forno, Chaves & Lücking spec. nov., C. arcabucana Moncada, C. Rodríguez & Lücking spec. nov., C. aturucoa Lücking, Moncada & C. Vargas spec. nov., C. auriculeslia Moncada, Yánez-Ayabaca & Lücking spec. nov., C. barbifera Moncada, Patiño & Lücking spec. nov., C. boleslia Lücking, E. Morales & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. caliginosa Holgado, Rivas Plata & Perlmutter spec. nov., C. campestris Dal Forno, Eliasaro & Spielmann spec. nov., C. canari Nugra, Dal Forno & Lücking spec. nov., C. caraana Lücking, Martins & Lucheta spec. nov., C. casasolana Moncada, R.-E. Pérez & Lücking spec. nov., C. caucensis Moncada, M. Gut. & Lücking spec. nov., C. celestinoa Moncada, Cabrera-Amaya & Lücking spec. nov., C. comaltepeca Moncada, R.-E. Pérez & Herrera-Camp. spec. nov., C. corani Lücking, E. Morales & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. corelleslia Moncada, A. Suárez-Corredor & Lücking spec. nov., C. crispoleslia Moncada, J. Molina & Lücking spec. nov., C. cuzcoensis Holgado, Rivas Plata & Perlmutter spec. nov., C. dalehana Moncada, Madriñán & Lücking spec. nov., C. davibogotana Lücking, Moncada & Coca spec. nov., C. davicrinita Moncada, Madriñán & Lücking spec. nov., C. davidia Moncada, L. Vargas & Lücking spec. nov., C. dewisanti Moncada, A. Suárez-Corredor & Lücking spec. nov., C. dulcis Moncada, R.-E. Pérez & Lücking spec. nov., C. elephas Lücking, Moncada & L. Vargas spec. nov., C. fuscodavidiana Lücking, Moncada & L. Vargas spec. nov., C. garagoa Simijaca, Moncada & Lücking spec. nov., C. gigantea Lücking, Moncada & Coca spec. nov., C. gomeziana Dal Forno, Chaves & Lücking spec. nov., C. guajalitensis Lücking, Robayo & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. hafecesweorthensis Moncada, Lücking & R. Peláez spec. nov., C. haledana Dal Forno, Chaves & Lücking spec. nov., C. hawksworthiana Dal Forno, P. Nelson & Lücking spec. nov., C. hochesuordensis Lücking, E. Morales & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. hymenocarpa Lücking, Chaves & Lawrey spec. nov., C. imi Lücking, Chaves & Lawrey spec. nov., C. itabaiana Dal Forno, Aptroot & M. Cáceres spec. nov., C. leslactuca Lücking, Moncada & R. Peláez spec. nov., C. maxima Wilk, Dal Forno & Lücking spec. nov., C. minutula Lücking, Moncada & Yánez-Ayabaca spec. nov., C. palaeotropica Weerakoon, Aptroot & Lücking spec. nov., C. palustris Dal Forno, Chaves & Lücking spec. nov., C. parabovei Dal Forno, Kukwa & Lücking spec. nov., C. paraciferrii Lücking, Moncada & J.E. Hern. spec. nov., C. paraminor Dal Forno, Chaves & Lücking spec. nov., C. pastorum Moncada, Patiño & Lücking spec. nov., C. pichinchensis Paredes, Jonitz & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. pikynasa J.-M. Torres, Moncada & Lücking spec. nov., C. pseudobovei Wilk, Dal Forno & Lücking spec. nov., C. pseudocorani Lücking, E. Morales & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. putumayensis L.J. Arias, Moncada & Lücking spec. nov., C. quillacinga Moncada, F. Ortega & Lücking spec. nov., C. rothesiorum Moncada, Madriñán & Lücking spec. nov., C. rubrosanguinea Nugra, Moncada & Lücking spec. nov., C. santacruzensis Dal Forno, Bungartz & Yánez-Ayabaca, spec. nov., C. schizophylloides Moncada, C. Rodríguez & Lücking spec. nov., C. smaragdina Lücking, Rivas Plata & Chaves spec. nov., C. soredavidia Dal Forno, Marcelli & Lücking spec. nov., C. subdavicrinita Moncada, J. Molina & Lücking spec. nov., C. suturifera Nugra, Besal & Lücking spec. nov., C. terrestris Dal Forno, Chaves & Lücking spec. nov., C. terricoleslia Wilk, Dal Forno & Lücking spec. nov., C. udebeceana Moncada, R. Peláez & Lücking spec. nov., C. urceolata Moncada, Coca & Lücking spec. nov., C. verjonensis Lücking, Moncada & Dal Forno spec. nov., C. viliewoa Lücking, Chaves & Soto-Medina spec. nov., and C. yukiboa Mercado-Díaz, Moncada & Lücking spec. nov. Furthermore, the taxonomic status of the recently described or recognized species C. arachnoidea, C. aspera, C. ciferrii, and C. reticulifera, is revised.