<i>Vaginatispora bharatensis</i> , sp. nov.—revealing the first conidial morph of genus <i>Vaginatispora</i> based on morphological and multigene phylogenetic analyses

A new species, <i>Vaginatispora bharatensis</i>, is reported from the forest area of Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka, India, based on morphological and molecular data (28S, 18S, ITS [internal transcribed space], <i>tef1-α</i> [translation elongation factor 1-alpha], <i>rpb2</i> [RNA polymerase II second largest subunit], and <i>β-tub</i> [beta-tubulin] sequences). <i>V. bharatensis</i> is the first anamorphic report of the genus <i>Vaginatispora</i> based on conidial form collected from the wild. The species is introduced in this paper as a novel species, with comprehensive description, illustration, and multigene phylogenetic analysis.