Fomitiporia in sub-Saharan Africa: morphology and multigene phylogenetic analysis support three new species from the Guineo-Congolian rainforest

Abstract

Fomitiporia nobilissima sp. nov., F. gabonensis sp. nov. and F. ivindoensis sp. nov., three species from the rainforest of the Guineo-Congolian phytogeographic region in Gabon, are described and illustrated. These species share a pileate basidiome, small basidiospores and an absence of setae. The critical morphological features that differentiate them are the pileus habit or shape, pore surface color, pore diameter and possibly ecology. Each new species forms distinct but closely related clades in phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences from nuclear ribosomal LSU, ITS and translation elongation factor 1-α. Other species in sub-Saharan Africa are discussed briefly. A key to six species of Fomitiporia from sub-Saharan Africa is provided. The new combination Fomitiporia apiahyna is proposed.

• Basidiomycota
• Gabon
• Hymenochaetales
• Phellinus
• tef1

The authors thank Dr Ludovic Ngok Banak and Mr Hervé Allogho Ndong respectively director of the Institute for Research on Tropical Ecology (IRET) and conservator of the Monts de Cristal National Park for granting work and collection permits and facilities for field research at IM and MC. Mr Nicolas Yao and Jean-Yves Abaga Mekoulou respectively field guide at Ipassa-Makokou research station and ecoguide at Monts de Cristal National Park were also of invaluable help. The late Professor C. Evrard (BOTA) helped with the Latin diagnosis. Cony Decock gratefully acknowledges the financial support from the Belgian Federal Science Policy (contract BCCM C3/10/003), the Fonds de la Recherche Fondamentale Collective (FRFC, contract 2.4515.06), and the Global Taxonomy Initiative (project GTI/ExtC/2007.31). Mario Amalfi gratefully acknowledges financial support from the Belgian Federal Science Policy through an Interuniversity Attraction Poles Program (phase VI, contract P6/06) and the logistic support from MUCL. Prudence Yombiyeni gratefully acknowledges the financial support received from the OIBT short-term grant program (OIBT: 036/08A) and from the ACP-FORENET project financially supported by the EU (project 9ACP RPR91#1). The authors also thank Mrs S. Huret and C. Bivort for their indispensable help in obtaining DNA sequences. The authors also thank the two anonymous reviewers and the associate editor for valuable comments.