Variability of spore length in some species of the genus Preussia (Sporormiella)

Abstract

Nine Preussia and Sporormiella isolates belonging to six different species (P. australis, P. intermedia, S. grandispora, P. minima, P. minimoides and S. similis) were studied for the variation of the morphological characters used to distinguish these species upon repeated transfers. A large variability of morphological features was observed among different subcultures from the same strain; in some cases, the ascospore length particularly made a reliable identification difficult at species level. These results revealed a high diversity and instability of some morphological characters within the genus Preussia. Taxonomic implications are discussed and P. grandispora and P. similis are also proposed as new combinations.