Fungalpedia – Note 1905, Melanconidaceae

 

Melanconidaceae G. Winter

Citation when using this data: Hyde KD et al. 2020 – Fungalpedia, Ascomycota.

Index Fungorum, Facesoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank.

Classification: Diaporthales, Diaporthomycetidae, Sordariomycetes, Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota, Fungi

Saprobic or pathogenic on plants and wood, in terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Sexual morph: Pseudostromata well-developed, obvious, erumpent. Ectostromatic disc surrounded by bark or not, yellowish-white. Ostiolar canal opening around the disc. Ascomata arranged as circles around the ectostromatic disc, oblique or horizontal, globose to subglobose, coriaceous and black with long, periphysate and lateral ostiolar canals. Peridium with outer, thick-walled, brown cells of textura globosa to textura angularis and inner, thick-walled, flat, hyaline cells of textura angularis. Paraphyses wide, hypha-like, deliquescent at maturity. Asci 8-spored, unitunicate, oblong to fusiform, short pedicellate, with distinct, J-, apical ring. Ascospores overlapping uniseriate to biseriate, hyaline, ellipsoid, 1-septate. Asexual morph: Coelomycetous. melanconium-like. Conidiomata acervular, scattered, solitary, superficial, black, coriaceous. Conidiophores branched at the base, septate, Conidiogenous cells annellidic, cylindrical. Conidia hyaline to brown, ellipsoid or subglobose, smooth-walled, thick-walled (adapted from Senanayake et al. 2017a).

Notes: Melanconidaceae includes species with yellowish-white ectostromatic discs, surrounding the ascomata which are arranged in a circle. Most of the family are saprobes and pathogens which cause diseases on economically important trees. Maharachchikumbura et al. (2016b) included 24 genera in the family. Sequence data is available for Dicarpella, Melanconiella, Melanconis, Melanconium, and Prosthecium. Voglmayr & Jaklitsch (2014) synonymized Prosthecium under Stilbospora and included the genus in Stilbosporaceae. Crous et al. (2012d) included more than half of known wuestneia-like species in Harknessia in Harknessiaceae. Morphological and molecular evidence showed that the family was monogeneric represented by Melanconis and its asexual morph Melanconium (Castlebury et al. 2002; Rossman et al. 2007). Melanconium was synonymized under Melanconis by Rossman et al. (2015). Phylogenetic analysis of Senanayake et al. (2017a) showed that Dicarpella and Melanconiella clustered away from the family. As a result, Senanayake et al. (2017a) excluded all the genera listed in Maharachchikumbura et al. (2016b) from Melanconidaceae, except Melanconis.

Type species: Melanconis Tul. & C. Tul.

 

References

Castlebury LA, Rossman AY, Jaklitsch WJ, Vasilyeva LN. 2002 – A phylogeny overview of the Diaporthales based on large subunit nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences. Mycologia 94, 1017– 1031.

Crous PW, Summerell BA, Shivas RG, Carnegie AJ, Groenewald JZ. 2012d – A re-appraisal of Harknessia (Diaporthales), and the introduction of Harknessiaceae fam.nov. Persoonia 28, 49–65.

Maharachchikumbura SSN, Hyde KD, Jones EBG, McKenzie EHC et al. 2016b – Families of Sordariomycetes. Fungal Diversity 79, 1–317.

Rossman AY, Farr DF, Castlebury LA. 2007 – A review of the phylogeny and biology of the Diaporthales. Mycoscience 48, 135–144.

Rossman AY, Adams GC, Cannon PF, Castlebury LA et al. 2015 – Recommendations of generic names in Diaporthales competing for protection or use. IMA Fungus 6, 145–154.

Senanayake IC, Crous P, Groenewald J, Maharachchikumbura SSN et al. 2017a – Families of Diaporthales based on morphological and phylogenetic evidence. Studies in Mycology 86, 217–296.

Voglmayr H, Jaklitsch WM. 2014 – Stilbosporaceae resurrected: generic reclassification and speciation. Persoonia 33, 61–82.

 

Entry by

Kevin David Hyde, Institute of Plant Health, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Haizhu District, Guangzhou 510225, P.R. China, Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand, Mushroom Research Foundation, 128 M.3 Ban Pa Deng T. Pa Pae, A. Mae Taeng, Chiang Mai 50150, Thailand, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand, Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, P.R. China, School of Science, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand, World Agroforestry Centre, East and Central Asia, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, P.R. China

 

Published online 5 March 2026

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