Mycosphere Doi 10.5943/mycosphere/3/5/9 Asterinales of India Hosagoudar VB Jawarlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Palode 695 562, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Hosagoudar VB. 2012 – Asterinales of India. Mycosphere 2(5), 617-852, Doi 10.5943 /mycosphere/3/5/9 This paper gives an account of 293 taxa resulting from the examination of 1168 fungal exsiccates belonging to 434 host plants in 82 families. The fungal taxa are distributed among 20 genera in two families, namely, Asterinaceae: Asterina (207 species), Asterolibertia (4), Bheemamyces (2), Gangamyces (2), Ishwaramyces (1), Meliolaster (1), Prillieuxina (11), Symphaster (1), Trichasterina (1), Vishnumyces (1); Lembosiaceae: Cirsosia (5), Echidnodella (5), Echidnoides (1), Eupelte (1), Lembosia (19), Maheshwaramyces (2). The anamorphs are Asterostomella (24), Asterostomula (3), Bramhamyces (1) and Mahanteshamyces (1). A new genus, Gangamyces with its type species, G. miliusae, is proposed to accommodate Asterina-like species possessing appressoria in couplets with a stellate lumen in the hyphal cells. Asterina cassiicola, Asterina clusiacearum, Asterina homaligena, Asterina kannurensis, Asterina kodajadriensis, Asterina mallotigena, Asterina mezonevronis, Asterina murrayicola, Asterina physalidis, Bheemamyces capparidis, Gangamyces miliusae, Gangamyces shoreae, Cirsosia vateriae, Lembosia calamigena, Lembosia garciniae, Lembosia pandanacearum, Maheshwaramyces coculi, Asterostomella anogeissi, Asterostomella flacourtiae-montanae, Asterostomella shoreae, Asterostomella xylosmae, Asterostomella ziziphina and Asterostomula pavettae are new species, while, Asterina munnarensis, Asterina songii and Asterina viburnicola are new names proposed for homonyms. The new combination has effected here as Prillieuxina argyreiae based on Asterinella argyreiae. All the genera, species and infraspecific taxa are arranged alphabetically in the two families (Asterinaceae and Lembosiaceae). Individual taxa are dealt with in detail and supplemented with line drawings and or photomicrographs. Host and fungus indexes are provided. Key words – Taxonomy– black mildews–asterinaceous fungi–India Article Information Received 15 February 2012 Accepted 28 April 2012 Published online 26 September 2012 *Corresponding author: VB Hosagoudar – e-mail – [email protected] Introduction India is located to the north of an northeast and northwest separates the country equator, lies between 8º 4' and 37º 6' north from the other Asian countries. The land latitude and 68º 7' and 97º 25' east latitude, narrows towards the southern tip and ends in measures 3214 kilometers from south to north Indian Ocean. The Andaman and Nicobar and 2933 km from east to west, the total land Islands are in the Bay of Bengal and the area being 32,87,263 square kilometers. It is Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea. It comprises bounded in the southwest by the Arabian Sea snow clad regions in the Himalayan region, and in the southeast by the Bay of Bengal, highest rainfall area in Assam, deserts in while the Himalayan ranges in the north, Rajasthan, hilly tracts in the Eastern and 617 Western Ghats of peninsular India and 9. Northeast (Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, coastlines along the eastern and western sides Mizorum, Tripura) with an area of of peninsular India. It has mainly three seasons 171341 sq. km in a year viz. rainy season (June to September 10. Islands (Andaman and Nicobar group and October to November), winter season (October to February) and summer season of Islands, Lakshadweep) with an area (March to June). The forest cover is 19.27% of of 8249 sq. km. the total geographic area. Of this, 11% has India is the mega biodiversity centre dense forest, while, the remaining are open with a vegetation rich Western Ghats and north forest. The total number of species of eastern regions, harbours more than 18,000 Phanerogams in India is estimated to be 45,000, flowering plants and of which several are of which 18,000 have been described. Of these, Indian origin. If we consider 1:10 ratio of plant 40-45% is endemic to the region and is largely to fungus, it has to 1, 80,000 plant parasitic concentrated in the Western Himalayas, Eastern fungi instead of the presently known 27,000 Himalayas and Peninsular India. species (Manoharachary et al. 2005). The study of the fungal systematics in India flourished BIOGEOGRAPHIC REGIONS OF INDIA between the years 1950-80, evidenced by the appearance of Monographs on Clavariaceae According to Rogers & Panwar (1988), (Thind, 1961), Indian Cercosporae (Vasudeva, India represents ten biogeographic regions: 1963), Mucorales of India (Tandon, 1968), Indian Polyporaceae (Bakshi, 1971), 1. Trans Himalaya (Jammu and Kashmir, Hyphomycetes (Subramanian, 1971), Himachal) with an area of 184823 sq. Myxomycetes (Thind, 1977), Ustilaginales km (Mundkur & Thirumalachar, 1952), 2. Himalaya (Uttaranchal, Jammu and Phyllachora (Kamat et al. 1978). Subsequently, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal the study of systematics started declining and now it has become rare and even we are not in a Pradesh, Sikkim) with an area of position to identify the common fungi. 210662 sq. km 3. Desert (Rajasthan, Gujarat) with an area Like rusts, smuts and powdery mildews, of 215757 sq. km black mildews are the parasitic fungi which produce black colonies on the host surfaces. 4. Semi arid (Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Black mildews are the group of organisms Haryana, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar occurring commonly in the tropical and Pradesh) with an area of 545850 sq. km subtropical regions of the world. These black 5. Western Ghats (Maharashtra, colony forming organisms belong to different Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu) taxonomic groups, viz. Meliolaceous fungi, with an area of 132606 sq. km Schiffnerulaceous fungi, Asterinaceous fungi, 6. Deccan Peninsula (Maharashtra, Hyphomycetous fungi. Meliolaceous fungi are distinct from others in having brown mycelium Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West with bi-cellular appressoria, setae, perithecial Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Tamil appendages and consistent brown septate Nadu, Bihar) with an area of 1380380 ascospores (Hansford 1961; Hosagoudar 1996, sq. km 2008; Hosagoudar & Agarwal 2008; 7. Gangetic Plain (Uttar Pradesh, West Hosagoudar et al. 1997). Bengal, Bihar) with an area of 354782 Asterinaceous fungi are ectophytic, sq. km obligate biotrophs infecting wide range of 8. Coast (Konkan region of Karnataka, flowering plants ranging from herbs to trees, Kerala, Goa, North Maharashtra, Orissa, weeds to economically important cultivated Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh) plants. These fungi produce thin to dense black with an area of 82813 sq. km colonies on the surface of the leaves. Structurally brown superficial mycelium 618 Mycosphere Doi 10.5943/mycosphere/3/5/9 produces appressoria which in turn produce Palaeoasterina siwalika has been recorded by haustoria or nutritive hyphae in to the Mitra et al. (2002). The in situ occurrence of epidermal cells of the host plant for the Palaeoasterina siwalika on the cuticle of nourishment. The fruiting body is flattened with Chonemorpha micenica leaf from the upper radiating cells known as thyriothecium, which Siwalik sediments of Arunachal Pradesh was splits radially like a star, hence they are known reported by Das et al. (2007). as Asterinaceous fungi. Asterinaceous fungi (s.s. Arx & Muller, 1975) represent 32 genera, The present study is the result of the belong to two families, namely, Asterinaceae work carried out in the Botanical Survey of and Lembosiaceae. The family Asterinaceae India, Southern Circle, Coimbatore since 1981 consists of more than 800 species and the genus and subsequently in Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Asterina alone is numbered more than 500 Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Palode species (Hosagoudar & Abraham, 2000). since 1996 to till date. Extensive exploration Doidge (1942) was the first to give an elaborate trips have been conducted to different parts of account of these fungi for South Africa. eastern and Western Ghats in Peninsular India but more intensively studied in Kerala State. In The first report of the genus Asterina practice, in experience, certain plants can be from India dates back to Asterina carbonacea identified even in their vegetative state based Cooke and Asterina congesta Cooke known on on the infected fungus. However, the speciation coriaceous leaves and Santalum album, here is mostly restricted up to the host family respectively, from Belgaum, Karnataka (Cooke, but in some places it is restricted to host genus, 1884). An intensive mycological exploration in where many species are known. The studied India was between1950-1975. Plant parasitic material deposited in Herbarium Cryptogamae fungi received much attention from several Indiae Orientalis (HCIO) and Agharkar researchers, such as Fungi of Madras were Mycological Herbarium (AMH). The material published by T. S. Ramakrishnan especially in received from Prof. Kamal and A.W. Nawami Ascomycetes. E. J. Butler who came to British from Uttar Pradesh are deposited in the India in 1901, collected fungi from different herbarium of Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical region and published “The Fungi Indiae Botanic Garden & Research Institute (TBGT). Orientalis” jointly with H. Sydow & P. Sydow The material sent to me for confirmation have and establishes “Herbarium Crytogamae been included in the present work. Indiae Orientalis” at Indian Agriculture Research Institute in Pusha, New Delhi. METHODOLOGY Thirumalachar