Fungalpedia – Note 2696, Brackelia
Brackelia Zhurb.
Citation when using this data: Meng QF et al. – Fungalpedia.
Index Fungorum, Faceoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank, Fig 1.
Classification: Helotiales genera incertae sedis, Leotiomycetes, Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota, Fungi.
Brackelia was introduced by Zhurbenko et al. (2017b) to accommodate the type species B. lunkei, which colonizes Cladonia amaurocraea. This genus is distinguished by its dark brown to nearly black, glossy, epruinose apothecia, which are superficial, rounded, and feature a flat disc with occasionally raised margins. The exciple is non-radiating, hairless, and brownish-orange laterally, transitioning to subhyaline at the base. The paraphyses are hyaline to light or medium brown, sometimes brownish-orange, filiform, and occasionally slightly clavate near the apex. They may branch below, are remotely septate, and do not constrict at the septa. Paraphyses dissociate readily in KOH. The asci are non-fissitunicate, narrowly clavate with a rounded apex and thickened apical wall, containing eight ascospores. The ascospores are hyaline, ellipsoid to very narrowly obovate, 0(–1)-septate, guttulate, with a smooth wall and no gelatinous sheath. They are arranged diagonally uniseriate to irregularly biseriate within the ascus (Zhurbenko et al. 2017b).
Due to its morphological features, Brackelia closely resembles species in Llimoniella (Helotiales). Consequently, Zhurbenko et al. (2017b) tentatively placed the genus within Helotiales. However, its systematic position remains uncertain and will require further clarification once molecular sequence data become available.
Type species: Brackelia lunkei Zhurb., On hymenium of Cladonia amaurocraea (Zhurbenko et al. 2017b).
Other accepted species: Species Fungorum – search Brackelia.
Figure 1 – Brackelia lunkei redrawn from Zhurbenko et al. (2017b). a Apothecia. b Section of apothecium. c Paraphyses. d Asci. e Ascospores. Scale bars: a = 100 μm, b = 20 μm, c, d = 10 μm, e = 2.5 μm.
Entry by
Meng QF, Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai, 57100, Thailand and School of Public Health, Zunyi Medical University, Guizhou 563000, China.
Published online 16 July 2026