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A new powdery mildew fungus, Erysiphe pakistanica (Erysiphaceae) infecting Indian willows is described from north-western areas of Pakistan. Identification is based upon morpho-anatomical features and molecular analysis. This species is characterized by having nipple-shaped appressoria, small chasmothecia and ascospores. Phylogenetic analysis of nrDNA of ITS and LSU regions of E. pakistanica supports its novel identity within the genus Erysiphe (Sect. Uncinula). A comprehensive description along with photographs and phylograms to show its exact position and a comparison with closely related taxa is provided.

Zafar, Irsa, Afshan, Najam-Ul-Sehar, Khalid, Abdul Nasir, Götz, Monika (2023): Erysiphe machilicola: a new powdery mildew species on Duthie's Bay Tree. Phytotaxa 594 (4): 283-291, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.594.4.5, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.594.4.5

Erysiphe machilicola I. Zafar, Afshan & Khalid sp. nov. (Fig. 2) MycoBank no. MB846778 Diagnosis:— Erysiphe machilicola (Erysiphe sect. Uncinula subsect. Uncinula) is distinct from morphologically similar Erysiphe species On hOsts Of the LaUraceae by having lOnger cOnidiOphOres (120‒175 µm) Up tO 210 µm lOng (inclUding cOnidia), larger chasmOthecia (116–148 µm), and lOnger appendages (135–290 µm), abOve all, it differs from E. machilina (Erysiphe sect. Uncinula subsect. Uncinuliella) in lacking bristle-like appendages (remnant of anchor hyphae), fewer uncinuloid appendages with non-enlarged apices and 7–8-spored asci, with much smaller ascospores. Type:— PAKISTAN. Azad Jammu & Kashmir: District Kotli, elevation 579 m alt., 33.58°N, 74.91°E, 11 th Dec, 2020, I. Zafar and N.S. Afshan [AJK-20] (LAH37584 – HOLOTYPE), on leaves of Machilus duthiei King ex Hook.f. GenBank accession number: (OP933721). Etymology:— the species epithet is composed of the name of host genus, Machilus, and -cola, meaning “colonizer”. Description:— MYCELIUM amphigenous, mainly epiphyllous,thin,effuse,persistent.HYPHAE hyaline,thin, smoothwalled, 4–8 µm wide. HYPHAL APPRESSORIA lObate tO mUltilObate, sessile, variable, 4–7 µm diam. CONIDIOPHORES erect, straight, (120‒175 µm) Up tO 210 µm lOng (inclUding cOnidia), 5–10 µm wide. FOOT CELLS cylindrical, straight, 88–102 × 5‒9 µm, fOllOwed by 1–2 shOrter cells. CONIDIA single, sUbcylindrical, 19–40 × 8–12 µm. CHASMOTHECIA scattered to gregariOUs, brOwn tO black, 116–148 µm diam. PERIDIUM CELLS cOnspicUOUs, pOlygOnal, 8–16 µm diam. APPENDAGES 12–16 per chasmothecium, either long or short, uncinuloid, arising around the chasmothecial middle (equatorial zone), 0.5–1.5 times as lOng as the chasmOthecial diam., 93–135 µm, width 4–6 µm thrOUghOUt Or at mOst slightly increasing tOwards the tip, apex tightly Uncinate-circinate, nOt enlarged, walls thick belOw (2–6 µm), gradUally becOming thinner towards the tip.ASCI 7–8 per chasmothecium, mostly stalked, rarely sessile, hyaline, globose, subglobose or ellipsoidal, 38–45 × 26–33 µm, 7–8-spOred. ASCOSPORES light grey in cOlOr, ellipsOidal tO OvOid, 13–20 × 9–12 µm. Additional material examined:— PAKISTAN. Azad Jammu & Kashmir: District Sudhanoti, elevation 1372 m alt., 33.71°N, 73.68°E, 12 th Oct. 2021, I. Zafar and N.S. Afshan [AJK-41] (LAH37585), on leaves of Machilus duthiei. GenBank accession number: (OP933720).

Phaeophyscia kaghanensis Niazi, Nadeem, Afshan & Khalid, sp. nov. (Fig. 2) The taxon is characterized by its greyish white to grey thallus, absence of asexual diaspores or cortical hairs, flat to slightly concave lobes, white medulla, black lower surface, large, Physcia-type ascospores of 24-30× 12-17 µm, and absence of secondary substances. HOLOTYPE. — Pakistan. Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Garhi Dupatta, 34°36’N, 73°35’E, 817 m alt., on tree bark, 2.X.2021, N. S. Afshan & A. R. Niazi, CKR-22 (holo-, LAH [LAH37615]; GenBank[OP933723]). ADDITIONAL SPECIMEN EXAMINED. — Pakistan. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kaghan Valley, Sharan, 34°30’N, 73°18’E, 2500 m alt., on tree bark, 22.VIII.2022, N. S. Afshan & A. R. Niazi, KA-17 (LAH [LAH 37616]; GenBank[OP 933724]). ETYMOLOGY. — The specific epithet ‘kaghanensis’ (Latin) refers to the type locality of Kaghan Valley. CHEMISTRY. — Thallus K-, C-, KC-, P-; no lichen substance detected by TLC. HABITAT AND DISTRIBUTION. — The known collections of the new species are from moist temperate, coniferous forest in the Himalaya in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The specimens were found on siliceous rock. The forest is dominated by species such as Pinus roxburghii Sarg., Pyrus pashia L., Quercus oblongata D.Don and Q. glauca Thunb. The maximum daily temperature of the region varies around 30-32°C during the summer, the average winter temperature is 4°C, and there is moderate rainfall. MYCOBANK. — MB846997. DESCRIPTION Thallus Foliose, epiphloeodal, greyish white to grey, remaining unchanged when wet, loosely attached to substratum, 3-5 cm in diam., more or less circular in outline. Lobes Densely, dichotomously or irregularly branched, without pruina, lobe tips greyish-white, flat to slightly concave, imbricate, usually upturned near the tips, 0.8-2.5 mm wide. Soralia and isidia Absent. Upper surface Dark brown, paraplectenchymatous, 20-25 µm thick. Algal layer 30-35 µm thick. Photobiont cells Globose, 10-15 µm in diam. Medulla White. Lower surface Black, usually becoming pale to dark grey towards lobe tips, not rhizinate. Rhizines Absent. Lower cortex Paraplectenchymatous, dark brown, 28-35 µm thick. Apothecia Frequent, usually present, 2.5-4 mm in diam., stipitate, lacking cortical hairs, epruinose. Disc Chocolate brown to black, dull, epruinose, flat to strongly convex. Margins Prominent, creamy to pale white. Epihymenium Light brown to brownish orange, 13-17 µm. Hymenium Hyaline, 90-110 µm. Hypothecium Hyaline, 25-35 µm. Ascus Cylindrical to clavate, 70-83 × 22-28 µm. Ascospores Dark brown, ellipsoid, Physcia - type, 24-30× 12-17µm. Paraphyses Hyaline, branched and anastomosing, 2-3 µm thick, wider at the apex, 4-5 µm thick. Pycnidia Not found., Published as part of Niazi, Abdul Rehman, Afshan, Najam-ul-Sehar, Naseer, Arooj, Nadeem, Muhammad, Iftikhar, Fatima, Fayyaz, Iram, Ashraf, Asma, Imtiaz, Sawera, Fatima, Shahzadi Qamar & Khalid, Abdul Nasir, 2023, A new species and a new record of the genus Phaeophyscia Moberg (Lecanorales, Physciaceae) from Pakistan supported by phenotypic and molecular phylogenetic analyses, pp. 51-59 in Cryptogamie, Mycologie 20 (4) on pages 52-56, DOI: 10.5252/cryptogamie-mycologie2023v44a4, http://zenodo.org/record/7867201, {"references":["MOBERG R. 1995. - The lichen genus Phaeophyscia in China and Russian Far East. Nordic Journal of Botany 15 (3): 319 - 335. https: // doi. org / 10.1111 / j. 1756 - 1051.1995. tb 00158. x","SVOBODA D. 1978. - Phaeophyscia hirsuta - a little known lichen in the Czech Republic. Mycotaxon 7: 302.","LIU D. & HUR J. S. 2019. - Revision of the lichen genus Phaeophyscia and allied atranorin absent taxa (Physciaceae) in South Korea. Microorganisms 7 (8): 242. https: // doi. org / 10.3390 / microorganisms 7080242"]}

Phaeophyscia microspora Aptroot & Schumm (Fig. 3) Virtuelles Herbarium de Flechtengattungen Hyperphyscia, Paeophyscia, Physcia und Physconia: 193 (Schumm & Aptroot 2019). SPECIMENS EXAMINED. — Pakistan. Margalla Hills, Islamabad, 1604 m alt., on tree bark, 33°41’35”N, 73°03’50”E, 09.IV.2019, A. Ashraf, K. Habib & M. Usman, T5-02 (LAH[LAH37622]; GenBank[OQ024193]); Azad Jammu and Kashmir, District Bagh, 33.9259°N, 73.7810°E, 4734 m alt., on tree bark, 10.XI.2021, A. Naseer, B-04 (LAH[LAH37624]; GenBank[OQ073895]); Azad Jammu and Kashmir, District Bagh, 33°55’33.24”N, 73°46’51.6”E, 4734 m alt., on tree bark, 12.XI.2021, A. Naseer, B-05 (LAH[LAH37625]; GenBank[OQ073896]); Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kaghan Valley, Shogran, 34°64’N, 73°46’E, 2362 m alt., on bark, 24.VIII.2021, A. R. Niazi & M. Nadeem, SN-1 (LAH [LAH37618]; GenBank[OP933725]); Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kaghan Valley, Siri Paya, 33°71’N, 78°08’E, 3000 m alt., on tree bark, 26.VIII.2022, A. R. Niazi & M. Nadeem, BK-14 (LAH [LAH37617]; GenBank[OP933722]). CHEMISTRY. — Thallus K-, C-, KC-, P-; no lichen substance detected by TLC. HABITAT AND DISTRIBUTION. — Pakistani collections of this species are from humid to moist temperate, coniferous forest and scrub forest. The specimens were found on tree bark. The maximum daily temperature of the Himalaya region varies around 30-32°C during the summer, the average winter temperature is 4°C, while Margala Hills have an average maximum temperature of 34.3°C and minimum of 3.4°C with an average rainfall of 1200 mm per year. DESCRIPTION Thallus Foliose, epiphloeodal, rust grey to pale grey, remaining unchanged when wet, loosely attached to substratum, very variable in size, 2-4 cm in diam. Lobes Densely, dichotomously or irregularly branched, without pruina, lobe tips creamy white, flat to strongly convex, imbricate, usually upturned near the tips, 0.5-1.5 mm wide. Soralia and isidia Absent. Cortex Dark brown, paraplectenchymatous, 18-23 µm thick. Algal layer 28-34 µm thick. Photobiont cells Globose, 8-13 µm in diam. Medulla White. Lower surface Black, usually becoming pale to dark grey towards lobe tips, rhizinate. Rhizines Dense, black, simple, 1.3-2.5 mm long. Lower cortex Paraplectenchymatous, dark brown, 18-30 µm thick. Apothecia Abundant, usually present, 1.5-3 mm in diam., stipitate to very shortly stipitate, the margin entire or becoming regularly crenate, with prominent cortical hairs, epruinose or slightly pruinose. Disc Charcoal black, shiny, flat to strongly concave or sometimes convex. Margins Prominent, creamy to pale white. Epihymenium Light brown to orange, 18-24 µm. Hymenium Hyaline to creamy, 70-90 µm. Hypothecium Creamy white, 22-28 µm. Ascus Cylindrical to clavate, 45-55 ×12-14 µm. Ascospores Dark brown, ellipsoid, Physcia - type, 16-20 ×7.5-9 µm. Paraphyses Hyaline, branched and anastomosing, 1.7-2.8µm thick, wider at the apex, 3-4 µm thick. Pycnidia Not found., Published as part of Niazi, Abdul Rehman, Afshan, Najam-ul-Sehar, Naseer, Arooj, Nadeem, Muhammad, Iftikhar, Fatima, Fayyaz, Iram, Ashraf, Asma, Imtiaz, Sawera, Fatima, Shahzadi Qamar & Khalid, Abdul Nasir, 2023, A new species and a new record of the genus Phaeophyscia Moberg (Lecanorales, Physciaceae) from Pakistan supported by phenotypic and molecular phylogenetic analyses, pp. 51-59 in Cryptogamie, Mycologie 20 (4) on pages 56-57, DOI: 10.5252/cryptogamie-mycologie2023v44a4, http://zenodo.org/record/7867201, {"references":["SCHUMM F. & APTROOT A. 2019. - Virtuelles Herbarium der Flechtengattungen Hyperphyscia, Phaeophyscia, Physcia und Physconia. Books on Demand, Norderstedt, 632 p."]}

Leucoagaricus gujratensis A. Rehman, Usman, Afshan & Khalid, sp. nov. (Figures 1–2) MycoBank: MB845724 Etymology: The specific epithet “ gujratensis ” (Latin) refers to the type locality “Gujrat District”. Diagnosis: This species is characterized by milky white pileus surface with brown furfuraceous squamules, lacrymoid to amygdaliform basidiospores (5.4–8.6 × 3.9–5.5 μm) with abundant clavate to slightly fusiform, fabiform cheilocystidia, pileipellis with periclinal hyphae to irregularly ascending, cylindrical and septate hyphae wide as cutis with light brown terminal end. Holotype: PAKISTAN. Punjab Province, Gujrat District (32°52’4.71”N 74° 7’35.85”E), 311 m a.s.l., on soil with leaf litter under Dalbergia sissoo Roxb., August 18, 2021, AG02, Amatu Rehman & Amanat Hussain (LAH37457). GenBank: OP526420 (ITS), OP885328 (LSU). Pileus 52–92 mm in diam., campanulate, expanding to convex to plano-convex or umbonate with small umbo with light brown (7.5YR 6/6) to dark brown (5YR 2/4) and incurved margins, smooth, shiny with brown (5YR 3/4) to light brown (7.5YR 5/4) glabrous around umbo on milky white (7.5Y 9/1) pileus surface that shows radial streaks towards margin. Lamellae milky white, close to distant, 1–3 series of lamellulae, with entire edges. Stipe 3.2–5.0 × 2.8–3.9 mm, pinkish white (10YR 7/3) to slightly brown (5YR 5/6), central, hollow, fibrillose, narrower towards the pileus.Annulus milky white (7.5Y 9/1), prominent, membranous, ascending. Context milky white (7.5Y 9/1). No color change on handling. Odor and taste not tested. Basidiospores [100/6/4] (5.4–)5.5–8.5(–8.6) × (3.9–)4.4–5.4(–5.5) μm, Q = (1.2–)1.3–1.4(–1.5), Qav = 1.35, amygdaliform in side view, narrowly ovoid in frontal view, hyaline in KOH, with refractive guttules, slightly thick walled (less than 3–4 μm), smooth, without a germ pore, dextrinoid. Basidia 12.9–25.4 × 7.6–11.8 μm, clavate, hyaline in KOH, bearing 1–4 sterigmata up to 3–5 μm long. Pleurocystidia absent. Cheilocystidia 7.9–27.2 × 5.7–12.8 μm, abundant, tightly packed, forming a sterile edge, clavate to slightly fusiform, fabiform, hyaline in 5% KOH, without crystal content. Pileipellis as cutis made up of periclinal hyphae to irregularly ascending, cylindrical to sub-cylindrical, slightly overlapping, septate hyphae 5.2–9.2 μm wide, light brown colored terminal ends, thin-walled to slightly thickwalled. Stipitipellis as cutis with repent, cylindrical, septate hyphae 2.4–5.8 μm wide, hyaline, thin walled. Annulus hyphae 4.2–8.2 μm wide, cylindrical to elongate, hyaline elements in 5% KOH. Clamp connections absent in all tissues. Habit and Habitat: Saprotrophic and solitary on sandy soil, rich in leaf litter under Dalbergia sissoo trees. Fruiting during Monsoon. Additional specimens examined: PAKISTAN. PUNJAB, Gujrat District (32°52’16.30”N 74° 7’30.32”E), 315 m a.s.l., August 18, 2021, AG 22, Amatu Rehman & Amanat Hussain (LAH37458), GenBank: OP526421 (ITS), OP885329 (LSU), (32°86’9N 74°13’1E) 313 m a.s.l., July 26, 2022, AR 41, Amatu Rehman & Amanat Hussain (LAH37607), (32°51’58.55”N 74° 7’27.47”E) 314 m a.s.l., August 07, 2022, AR 42, Amatu Rehman & Amanat Hussain (LAH 37608).