Pestalotiopsis jiangmenensis Q. C. Wang & X. D. Zhou 2025, sp. nov.

Pestalotiopsis jiangmenensis Q. C. Wang & X. D. Zhou sp. nov. Fig. 7 Etymology. Named after the collection site of the type specimen, Jiangmen City. Typus. CHINA • Guangdong Province, Jiangmen City, Taishan County, Chixi Town, 21°53'10"N, 112°57'0"E, on diseased needle of Pinus massoniana, 28 August 2023, Quanchao Wang, Guoqing Li, Feifei Liu & Yuhua Liang (holotype designated here HMAS 353944, dried culture prepared from ZXD 964; ex-holotype culture ZXD 964 = CFCC 72595). Description. Sexual state not seen. Conidiomata in culture sporodochial, saucer-shaped, scattered or gregarious, superficial to immersed, shining, releasing black conidial masses on the surface. Conidiophores branched, subcylindrical, hyaline to light brown, indistinct, often reduced to conidiogenous cells. Conidiogenous cells cylindrical or ampulliform, hyaline, smooth-walled, solitary to aggregated, (2.5 –) 6–11.5 (– 14) × (0.5 –) 1.5–3 (– 3.5) μm (x ± SD = 8.9 ± 2.7 × 2.4 ± 0.7 μm). Conidia fusoid, ellipsoid, smooth, slightly constricted at the septa, 4 - septate, (18 –) 19.5–22.5 (– 25) × (5 –) 5.5–7 (– 7.5) μm (x ± SD = 20.9 ± 1.5 × 6.2 ± 0.6 μm); three median cells doliiform, wall verruculose, concolourous, (11 –) 12–14.5 (– 16) μm (x ± SD = 13.3 ± 1.2 μm) long; second cell from the base (3.5 –) 4–5 (– 5.5) μm (x ± SD = 4.4 ± 0.5 μm) long; third cell (3.5 –) 4–5 (– 6) μm (x ± SD = 4.4 ± 0.5 μm); fourth cell (3.5 –) 4–5 (– 6) μm (x ± SD = 4.5 ± 0.6 μm); apical cell conic with an acute apex, thin- and smooth-walled, hyaline to pale brown, (2.5 –) 3–4 (– 4.5) μm (x ± SD = 3.5 ± 0.6 μm) long, with 2–4 tubular appendages (mostly three); apical appendages arising from an apical crest, unbranched, filiform, bent, (5.5 –) 10–15.5 (– 24) μm (x ± SD = 12.7 ± 2.7 μm); basal cell obconic with a truncate base, thin-walled, hyaline or pale brown, (3 –) 3.5–4.5 (– 5) μm (x ± SD = 4.1 ± 0.5 μm) long, with one appendage, tubular; basal appendage centric, tubular, unbranched, occasionally swollen at the tip, (2.5 –) 4–6 (– 8.5) μm (x ± SD = 5 ± 1.2 μm) long. Culture characteristics. Colonies exhibited abundant flocculent aerial mycelium on PDA at 25 ° C, with irregular margins at the edges, while the reverse side of the colony appeared light orange, forming black conidiomata with black conidial masses. Optimal growth temperature at 25 ° C, no growth at 5 ° C and 35 ° C; after 10 d, colonies at 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 ° C reached 35.5, 41.4, 71.1, 88.6 and 81.2 mm, respectively (Fig. 8). Additional materials examined. CHINA • Guangdong Province, Jiangmen City, Taishan County, Chixi Town, 21°53'10"N, 112°57'0"E, on diseased needle of Pinus massoniana, 28 August 2023, Quanchao Wang, Guoqing Li, Feifei Liu & Yuhua Liang (culture ZXD 965). Notes. Pestalotiopsis jiangmenensis forms a well-supported independent clade (ML / BI = 100 / 1) and is phylogenetically distinct from Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae and Pes. spatholobi (Fig. 3). In detail, Pes. jiangmenensis was distinguished from Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae and Pes. spatholobi in ITS (Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae 4 bp, Pes. spatholobi: 4 bp); tef 1 - α gene (Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae: 1 bp, Pes. spatholobi: 1 bp); tub 2 gene (Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae: 2 bp, Pes. spatholobi: 2 bp). Morphologically, Pes. jiangmenensis can be distinguished from Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae and Pes. spatholobi by its shorter, but more numerous apical appendages (Pes. jiangmenensis: 5.5–24 μm, n = 2–4; Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae: 9–25 μm, n = 2–3; Pes. spatholobi: 8.4–15.3 μm, n = 1–3). Notably, Pes. jiangmenensis exhibits shorter basal appendages than Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae, but longer ones than Pes. spatholobi (Pes. jiangmenensis: 2.5–8.5 μm; Pes. pyrrosiae-linguae: 4.5–13 μm; Pes. spatholobi: 0.9–3.1 μm). Based on both phylogenetic and morphological evidence, we propose the recognition of Pes. jiangmenensis as a novel species.