Abstract
Four new helicoid anamorphic fungi collected from marine habitats in Egypt and Japan are described. Three marine and one terrestrial
Cirrenalia
species along with two
Cumulospora
species and the four new fungi were sequenced for LSU and SSU rDNA. Phylogenetic analyses of the generated sequences, along with those from GenBank, confirmed the polyphyly of the genera
Cirrenalia
and
Cumulospora
, and new genera are erected to accommodate the displaced species. Eight new genera, four new species and six new combinations are made: 1.
Halazoon
anam.-gen. nov. (
Halazoon melhae
sp. nov.,
H
.
fuscus
for
Cirrenalia fusca
), 2.
Moheitospora
anam.-gen. nov. (
Moheitospora fruticosae
sp. nov.,
M
.
adarca
for
Cirrenalia adarca
), 3.
Moleospora
anam.-gen nov. (
Moleospora maritima
sp. nov.), and 4.
Glomerulispora
anam.-gen. nov. (
Glomerulispora mangrovis
sp. nov);
Cirrenalia pygmea
,
Cirrenalia tropicale
and
Cumulospora varius
are transferred to the new genera, 5.
Hydea
anam.-gen. nov, 6.
Matsusporium
anam.-gen. nov., and 7.
Moromyces
anam.-gen. nov., respectively. These genera can be assigned to the order Lulworthiales, TBM (
Torpedospora
/
Bertia
/
Melanospora
) clade, while
Cirrenalia macrocephala
is nested within the order Halosphaeriales. Few morphological characters delineate the genera and species assigned to the Lulworthiales and this aspect is discussed in relation to the molecular data. The phylogenetic position of the terrestrial species,
Cirrenalia japonica
, shows that it is a member of the order Pleosporales, and a new genus, 8.
Hiogispora
anam.-gen. nov. is proposed for the fungus.