Necromortierella Vandepol & Bonito, gen. nov.
Index Fungorum number: MB 833725; Facesoffungi number: FoF
Etymology: necro- (death) refers to the necrotrophic mycophilic lifestyle of the type species, in that it kills and consumes the cells of other fungi.
Description: Sporangiophore narrow, tapering quickly to a narrower apex with irregular dichotomous branching. Spo- rangiospores are ellipsoidal to cylindrical. Chlamydospores are elongated or irregular.
Habitat: N. dichotoma is the only known necrotrophic mycophile (kills fungal cells and feeds saprotrophically on the dead tissue) in Mortierellaceae. This species has only been reported from mouse dung in Germany.
Type species: Necromortierella dichotoma (Linnem. Ex W. Gams) Vandepol & Bonito
Notes: – There may be additional species in this genus that were not included in this study. Additional work must be done to determine whether related species are also necro- trophic mycophiles.
Species