Bryophilous Pezizales in Japan: First records of three rare species, Lamprospora dicranellae, Neottiella ricciae, and Octospora humosa agg.

We report three bryophilous discomycete species belonging to the Octospora lineage (Pyronemataceae, Pezizales) that have not been recorded in Japan. Specimens were collected from Honshu (i.e., Chiba, Ibaraki, Tochigi, and Yamaguchi Prefectures) and identified based on morphological observations and phylogenetic analyses using the small and large subunits of nuclear rDNA and the elongation factor 1-alpha gene. The first species, Lamprospora dicranellae, was found on soil near the gametophytes of Ditrichum macrorhynchum. The second species, Neottiella ricciae, was found on the thallus of Riccia bifurca, R. glauca, and R. miyakeana. The third species, a member of the Octospora humosa aggregate, was found on soil near the gametophytes of Polytrichum commune. Lamprospora dicranellae represents the first record from Asia, and N. ricciae and O. humosa are new to Japan.