Integrating Phylogenetic and Morphological Data Reveals New Taxa of Hydnum (Hydnaceae, Cantharellales) from China

Hydnum is a genus of ectomycorrhizal fungi characterized by umbrella-shaped basidiocarps and hydnoid hymenium in the family Hydnaceae of Cantharellales. New species of this genus have been increasingly discovered worldwide, particularly in Asia in recent years. But compared with other fungal groups, the species richness of Hydnum still warrants sustained attention. In this study, phylogenetic analyses of Hydnum in China were conducted based on the dataset of the large subunit of the nuclear ribosomal RNA gene (nLSU), internal transcribed spacer regions (ITS) and translation elongation factor 1-alpha gene (tef-1α). Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian analyses were used to reconstruct the phylogenetic tree. Five phylogenetic taxa have been recognized and described or redescribed employing phylogenetic and morphological analyses: one new subsection, namely the Hydnum subsect. Tangerinum, two new species namely H. cavum and H. dazhouense, as well as two newly recorded species of China: H. albopallidum and H. repando-orientale. A key to the species of Hydnum in China was provided.