Six Unrecorded Species of Polyporales (Agaricomycetes, Basidiomycota) from Mudeungsan National Park in Republic of Korea

The order Polyporales is a diverse group of macrofungi, comprising approximately 2500 species worldwide. The majority of these species are wood-decaying saprotrophs that contribute to the carbon cycle by degrading lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose. They also produce valuable enzymes with wide industrial applications. Despite their ecological and industrial importance, the diversity of Polyporales in Republic of Korea remains relatively understudied compared to the global scale. Mudeungsan, a representative National Park in southern region of Republic of Korea, has recently been recognized for its high biodiversity, supported by the studies of several new and unrecorded macrofungal species. To discover indigenous Polyporales species, we conducted surveys in Mudeungsan National Park from 2021 to 2023. Collected specimens were identified based on the morphological characteristics, molecular and phylogenetic analyses using the internal transcribed spacer and nuclear large subunit ribosomal DNA regions. Consequently, 12 specimens were identified as six unrecorded Polyporales in Republic of Korea: <i>Efibula yunnanensis</i>, <i>Hyphoderma crystallinum</i>, <i>H. puerense</i>, <i>Mycoaciella efibulata</i>, <i>Skeletocutis lepida</i>, and <i>Steccherinum tenuissimum</i>. This study provides morphological descriptions and phylogenetic trees to support the identification of six unrecorded species in Mudeungsan National Park.