Fungalpedia – Note 3223, Mariannaea

 

Mariannaea. G. Arnaud ex Samson.

Citation when using this data: Bao DF et al. 2023– Fungalpedia.

Index Fungorum, Facesoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank, Fig 1

Classification: Nectriaceae, Hypocreales, Hypocreomycetidae, Sordariomycetes, Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota, Fungi

Mariannaea was formally established by Samson (1974) to accommodate M. camptospora, M. elegans and the variety M. elegans var. punicea and typified by M. elegans. The genus is characterized by branched, septate conidiophores with hyaline, flask-shaped phialides, 1–2-celled, hyaline conidia mostly forming imbricate chains or slimy heads (Samson 1974; Samson and Bigg 1988; Samuels and Seifert 1991). The sexual morph of Mariannaea has been linked to Nectria (Samuels and Seifert 1991) and Cosmospora (Gräfenhan et al. 2011). However, Cosmospora and Nectria have been shown polyphyletic within Nectriaceae, while Mariannaea formed a monophyletic clade within Nectriaceae. Therefore, Gräfenhan et al. (2011) retained Mariannaea as a distinct genus in Nectriaceae.

The classification and species concept of Mariannaea were reviewed by Hu et al.  (2017), they designated an epi-type for M. elegans (the type species of Mariannaea) and accepted 15 species in the genus. Five new species were further introduced in the genus (Crous et al. 2019; Hyde et al. 2020; Boonmee et al. 2021; Watanabe and Hirose 2021; Yang et al. 2021). Currently, 20 species are accepted in the genus (Index Fungorum 2023). This study collected five fresh collections from freshwater habitats in Yunnan Province. Two new species M. yunnanense and M. suae, as well as two new records are introduced based on phylogenetic analysis and morphological characters.

Type species: Mariannaea elegans (Corda) Samson, Stud. Mycol. 6: 75 (1974)

Other accepted species: Species Fungorum – search Mariannaea.

 

References

Boonmee S, Wanasinghe DN, Calabon MS, Huanraluek N. et al. 2021 – Fungal diversity notes 1387– 1511: taxonomic and phylogenetic contributions on genera and species of fungal taxa. Fungal Divers 111:1–335.

Crous PW, Carnegie AJ, Wingfield MJ, Sharma R. et al. 2019 – Fungal planet description sheets: 868–950. Persoonia 42:291–473.

Gräfenhan T, Schroers HJ, Nirenberg HI, Seifert KA 2011 – An overview of the taxonomy, phylogeny, and typification of nectriaceous fungi in Cosmospora, Acremonium, Fusarium, Stilbella, and Volutella. Stud Mycol 68:79–113.

Hu DM, Wang M, Cai L. 2017 – Phylogenetic assessment and taxonomic revision of Mariannaea. Mycol Prog 16(4):271–283.

Hyde KD, Jeewon R, Chen YJ, Bhunjun CS. et al. 2020 – The numbers of fungi: is the descriptive curve flattening? Fungal Divers 103:219–271.

Samson RA 1974 – Paecilomyces and some allied Hyphomycetes. Stud Mycol 6:1–119.

Samson RA, Bigg WL 1988 – A new species of Mariannaea from California. Mycologia 80:131–134.

Samuels GJ, Seifert KA 1991 – Two new species of Nectria with Stilbella and Mariannaea anamorphs. Sydowia 43:249–263.

Watanabe K, Hirose D 2021 – A novel Mariannaea species isolated from decayed pine needles in Japan. Phytotaxa 522(3):211–220.

Yang H, Wang GN, Zhang H 2021 – Mariannaea submersa sp. nov., with a new habitat and geographic record of Mariannaea catenulata. Mycosystema 40(6):1286–1298.

 

Entry by

Bao Dan‑Feng, College of Agriculture and Biological Science, Dali University, Dali 671003, Yunnan, P.R. China, Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.

 

Published online 28 September 2026

 

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