Similiboletinus tomentopileatus gen. et sp. nov. from Tropical China, a New Boletoid Taxon Based on Morphological and Molecular Data

Boletaceae, a family of profound ecological influence and economic value, has been the subject of prolific taxonomic research over the past decade, with new taxa continually being discovered. In this study, Similiboletinus tomentopileatus gen. et sp. nov., collected from a tropical region of China, is proposed based on integrative morphological and phylogenetic analyses. Phylogenetic analyses of a multigene dataset (LSU-rpb2-tef1-α-atp6) strongly support the position of Similiboletinus within the Suillelloideae. Morphologically, it is characterized by a tomentose and yellow–brown pileus, a subdecurrent hymenophore, unchanging context when injured, a boletoid hymenophoral trama, a cutis-type pileipellis, and broadly ellipsoid to ovoid basidiospores. The identification of Similiboletinus further underscores the striking and largely unexplored diversity of Boletaceae within tropical China.