Cordyceps qingchengensis
Cordyceps qingchengensis L.S. Zha & T.C. Wen, Phytotaxa 416(1): 18 (2019)
Index Fungorum number: IF 556460; Facesoffungi number: FoF 03405
Parasitic on insect cocoon. Sexual morph: See Zha et al. (2019). Asexual morph: Synnemata numerous, cylindrical, fleshy, unbranched, erected, apically white, powdery due to sporulation. Conidiophores 3–5.5 (x̄ = 4.2, n = 25) μm, developing from outer layer of synnemata, macronematous, septate, apically swollen and branched, forming cellular hypha where give rise to metulae. Metulae 3–7 (x̄ = 4.5, n = 20) μm, occurring in dense clusters on apical regions of conidiophores, subglobose to globose, thin-walled, bearing group of phialides. Phialides 3.5–6 × 2–3.5 (x̄ = 4.5 × 2.7, n = 30) μm, ampulliform, smooth-walled, phialidic. Conidia 2.8–4 × 1.3–2 (x̄ = 3.4 × 1.7, n = 40) μm, hyaline, ellipsoidal, aseptate, aggregated in chains.
Culture characteristics – Colonies on PDA reaching 4.5 cm after 15 days at 25 °C, white, circular, fluffy, margin entire, mycelia loose reverse white.
Material examined – China, Yunnan Province, Honghe County, Amushan natural reserve, on insect cocoon packed by dead leaf on ground, 15 June 2018, De-Ping Wei, TSQ05 (HKAS 102444), living culture KUNCC 21-10502.
Notes – Cordyceps qingchengensis was known from its sexual morph, which was found on a silk moth (Lepidoptera) in Sichuan Province, China (Zha et al. 2019). However, our collection was found in its asexual morph, which occurred on insect cocoon buried in soil. Thus, it is impossible to compare their morphologies. The nucleotide comparison between our collection (HKAS 102444) and type strain of C. qingchengensis shows 2/568 bp, 3/822 bp, 1/988 bp and 2/896 bp differences in ITS, LSU, SSU and tef1sequences, respectively. Based on the similarity of nucleotide sequences, we determined our isolate as the asexual morph of C. qingchengensis and amended the species description.
Cordyceps qingchengensis (HKAS 102444) e Stromata growing from hosts. f Conidiophores. g Phialides. h, Conidia. Scale bar: f = 20 μm, g, h = 5 μm (f–h stained with Congo red solution)
Reference:
Wei DP, Gentekaki E, Wanasinghe DN, Karunarathna SC, Tang SM, Hyde KD 2022 – Diversity, molecular dating and ancestral characters state reconstruction of entomopathogenic fungi in Hypocreales. Mycosphere 13: 281–351.