Hurdles in fungal taxonomy: Effectiveness of recent methods in discriminating taxa

Abstract

The fungal kingdom is estimated to comprise between 2.2 to 3.8 million species with only about 7% named and classified. Novel biochemical, physiological and molecular techniques have been utilized to improve the systematics of fungal taxa and estimates of their diversity. Multidisciplinary approaches should be used for resolving species and higher taxa of the fungi. However, even with all the benefits of the new techniques, they are also providing unclear results and taxonomic instability. Taxonomists should be aware of these issues and should follow pragmatic approaches. In order to overcome these taxonomic challenges, cooperation and communication among mycologists worldwide are crucial for the study of fungal diversity.