A new species, phylogeny, and a worldwide key of the edible wood decay Fistulina (Agaricales)

Fistulina is a poroid genus of wood-rooting fungi that includes annual and edible species. Nine species are currently accepted from the temperate regions of Europe, China, America, and Australia. In Patagonia, Argentina, F. antarctica and F. endoxantha grow on live and dead wood and stumps of native Nothofagaceae trees and are recognized as edible mushrooms with ancestral use by the native Mapuche–Tehuelche people. In this study, a detailed account of Fistulina in Patagonia (Argentina) is presented based on an integrative analysis of phylogenetic, macro- and micro-morphological features, and host relationships. Internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and nuclear 28S rDNA (LSU) genes were jointly analyzed to identify specimens from Argentina and to examine their phylogenetic relationships with other Fistulina species. The phylogenetic analyses revealed that the Patagonian species form a strongly supported group together with species from the Southern Hemisphere. Within this group, the Patagonian collections formed three species-level lineages: the F. antarctica lineage; the F. endoxantha lineage (in a basal position of the Southern Hemisphere cluster), and a new phylogenetic group characterized as a new species Fistulina pumiliae , represented by Patagonian collections growing on Nothofagus pumilio . The new taxon is distinguished by ochre to brown basidiomata and by larger spores when compared with the other species. The three Patagonian species also present different host associations, with F. antarctica being the most polyphagous species. A key for northern and southern Fistulina species is presented.