Additions to Pestalotiopsis in Taiwan

As part of fungal exploration of Taiwan, we found several pestalotioid taxa from Taipei Botanical Gardens, Zhongzheng District. Based on single-and multi-locus phylogenies using internal transcribed spacer, -tubulin and partial translation elongation factor 1- gene regions, along with morphological features, these species fit into two novel taxa of Pestalotiopsis sensu stricto and are proposed herein as Pestalotiopsis formosana and P. neolitseae. Pestalotiopsis formosana and P. neolitseae were isolated from dead grass and living leaves of Neolitsea villosa respectively. These two novel species are morphologically comparable with Pestalotiopsis sensu stricto in having concolourous median cells, but differ from the phylogenetically related species in the size of the conidia, the number of apical appendages, the length of basal appendages, plus ecology and distribution. The results of pathogenicity testing revealed that Pestalotiopsis neolitseae is capable of causing leaf spots on Neolitsea villosa and to the best of our knowledge, this is the first record of Pestalotiopsis species associated with leaf spots of Neolitsea villosa in Taiwan.