Mycologist, Volume 1 7 , Part 1 February 2003. ©Cambridge University Press Printed in the United Kingdom. DOI: 10.1017/ S0269915X03001162 Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae: a mycoparasite on Lasiosphaeria ovina – n ew to Britain (NBR 2 2 4 ), Norway, Ru ssia an d th e USA ANDREW MILLER1 , THOMAS LÆSSØE2 , PETER ROBERTS3 & KERRY ROBINSON4 1 Botany Department, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois 60605-2496, and Department of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607 – 7060, USA. E-mail: amiller@fmnh.org 2 Department of Mycology, Botanical Institute, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade 2D, DK-1353, Copenhagen K, Denmark 3 Herbarium, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey. TW 9 3AB, UK. 4 71 London Road, Baldock, Hertfordshire. SG7 6NA, UK. Keywords: Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae, Lasiosphaeria ovina, mycoparasite, Platygloeaceae Th e mycoparasite Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae Pou zar wa s fir st inva lidly a n d illegitim ately pu blish ed by Arn au d (1 9 5 1 ) as Jacobia conspicua from a collection n ear Paris. Alth ou gh h e th ou gh t th at th e sporoph ores resembled basidia, h e described it as a hyph omycete (ch aracterized by th e large clamp-con n exion s) on th e basis of th e su ccessive spore produ ction . Pou zar (1 9 8 7 ) later collected th is fu n gu s from Czech oslovakia an d Polan d an d determin ed th at th e sporogen ou s bran ch es described by Ar n a u were a ctu a lly ba sidia . He appropriately redescribed it as a h eterobasidiomycete ren amin g it Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae Pou z. after th e German mycologist, J. Krieglstein er. At th e same time it was placed in its own family, Krieglstein eraceae, wh ich is n ow con sidered a syn onym of Platygloeaceae in th e Uredin iomycetes (Kirk et al., 2 0 0 1 ). Pou zar believed th at K. lasiosphaeriae was en dan gered an d sh ou ld be in clu ded in th e red data book of Cen tral Eu ropean mycota owin g to th e rapid decrease of its h ost cau sed by air pollu tion . However, sin ce th en it h as been fou n d in Den mark (Læ ssoe & Lan ge, 1 9 9 8 ) an d is n ow reported h ere for th e first time from En glan d, Norway, Ru ssia an d th e Un ited States. Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae is probably mu ch m ore abu n da n t th a n previou sly th ou gh t, bu t is in frequ en tly observed du e to its cryptic n atu re. Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae Pou z. in Beiträge zur kenntnis der Pilze Mitteleuropas 3 : 4 0 1 -4 0 5 (1 9 8 7 ). Uninfected perithecia (of Lasiosphaeria ovina) 12 tomen tose or waxy to almost glabrou s with age (Fig 1 ). Infected perithecia setose with capitate setae composed of tran slu cen t droplets at apices of hyalin e stalks (Figs 2 ,3 ). Basidiophores acu leate to su bu late, (4 4 .5 -) 5 1 – 6 6 .5 x 3 – 6 µm at apex, hyalin e, 1 – septate with a large clamp-con n exion , th in – to sligh tly th ick-walled (walls u p to 1 .5 µm th ick), an ch ored at base with root-like ou tgrowth s; base tri – to tetrapodal, 1 0 -2 3 µm wide, hyalin e, sligh tly th ick-walled; apically with 2 -3 basidia (Figs. 4 , 5 ). Basidia crozier-like, 1 3 .5 – 2 0 x 4 – 7 µm, hya lin e, tra n sver sely-septate, 4 -celled; apica l cell h ooked, th in -walled, with basal clamp-con n exion (Fig 6 ). Basidiospores ellipsoid to obpyriform, 4 .5 – 7 (-8 ) x 2 – 3 .5 µm, hyalin e, th in -walled, produ ced su ccessively in large masses, aggregatin g to form a large, slimy droplet, occasion ally replicatin g an d appearin g as two cells join ed by a sh ort con ju gation tu be (Fig 7 ). Anamorph composed of hyalin e, regu larly bran ch ed, th in -walled, clamped hyph ae; con idia produ ced sympodially on termin al bran ch es, den ticles remain in g u pon release of con idia (Figs 8 , 9 ). Conidia elon gate ellipsoid to cylin drical, 8 .5 – 1 3 x 3 – 4 µm, ir regu lar at base, hyalin e, th in -walled (Fig 1 0 ). Surface hyphae 2 – 4 µm, hya lin e, th in -to sligh tly th ick-wa lled, cla m ped; gloeohyph a e occa sion a lly presen t, bu lbou s, with resin ou s con ten ts, refractive. Specimens examined (on perith ecia of Lasiophaeria ovina): ENGLAND: Hertfordsh ire, Waterford Heath , 1 1 Nov. 2 0 0 1 , Robin son , F 1 1 3 9 2 4 4 ; K(M) 9 1 5 0 2 (New British Record 2 2 4 ). NORWAY: Sogn og Fjordan e, Sogn dal, Kau pan ger cen tre alon g river W of Kau pstad, plan ted spru ce on rich er grou n d, on L. ovina (n 3 7 1 3 7 ) Mycologist, Volume 17, Part 1 February 2003 Figs 1 -1 0 Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae on Lasiosphaeriae ovina. Fig 1 . Un in fected perith ecia of L. ovina. Figs 2 -3 , In fected perith ecia of L. ovina. Fig 4 . Mycoparasite projectin g from ou ter ascomal wall. Fig 5 . Basidioph ore with basidia an d basidiospores. Fig 6 . Basidiu m produ cin g two basidiospores (ar rows). Fig 7 . Basidiospores. Figs 8 -9 , An amorph produ cin g con idia sh owin g sympodially ar ran ged den ticles left after produ ction of con idia. Fig 1 0 . Con idia. All images (except Fig 1 ) from F1 1 3 9 2 4 4 . Bar: Figs. 1 – 3 = 1 0 0 µm; Figs. 4 – 1 0 = 1 0 µm. on Betula, UTM(WGS8 4 ): MN 0 4 7 8 5 3 , 8 Sep. 2 0 0 0 , Joh an n esen , det . Læ ssøe, K(M) 7 9 2 5 9 (K-F3 7 6 2 6 ). RUSSIA: Kh abarovskiy krai, Kh rebet Kh ekh tsir, (4 8 ° 1 4 ' N, 1 3 4 ° 5 8 ' E), forest in cl. Quercus mongolica, Tilia amurensis, Fraxinus manshurica, 8 Au g. 1 9 9 8 , Læ ssøe, TL-5 0 6 6 (C). U.S.A.: Illin ois, Ogle Cou n ty, Castle Rock St. Park, 2 7 Sept. 1 9 9 6 , Hu h n dorf & Fern an dez, SMH 2 6 7 2 (F); Wh ite Pin es Forest St. Park, 2 8 Sept. 1 9 9 6 . Hu h n dorf & Fern an dez, SMH 2 6 9 6 , SMH 2 7 1 2 (F). Acknow ledgements Th e au th ors wou ld like to th an k Dr. Sabin e Hu h n dorf for providin g th e macroscopic images an d Dr. Robert Ban don i for h elpfu l commen ts on pyren omyceticolou s h eterobasidiomycetes. Referen ces Arn au d, G. (1 9 5 1 ). Les ‘bou cles mycéien n es’ des Eu mycètes et la ph ilogén ie des Urédin ées. Bulletin de la Societé mycologique de France 6 7 : 1 7 3 -1 9 8 . Kirk, P. M., Can n on , P. F., David, J. C. & Stalpers, J. A. (2 0 0 1 ). Ainsworth & Bisby’s Dictionary of the Fungi, Edit. 9 . Wallin gford: CAB In tern ation al. Læ ssøe, T. & Lan ge, C. (1 9 9 8 ). Krieglsteinera lasiosphaeriae – en h øjst besyn derlig snylter på Lasiosphaeria ovina. Svampe 3 7 : 4 2 -4 4 . Pou zar, Z. (1 9 8 7 ). Krieglasteinera, a fu n gu s on th e verge of extin ction in Cen tral Eu rope. Beiträge zur kenntnis der Pilze Mitteleuropas 3 : 4 0 1 -4 0 5 . 13