Catabotrys
Catabotrys Theiss. & Syd., Annls mycol. 13(3/4): 297 (1915)
Sordariomycetes orders incertae sedis, Catabotryales, Catabotryaceae, Catabotrys
Index Fungorum number: IF834; Facesoffungi number: FoF 05087; 2 morphological species (Species Fungorum 2020), 1 species with sequence data.
Saprobic on tropical monocotyledons. Sexual morph: Stromata solitary or irregularly scattered, conspicuous, multi-loculate, superficial, with base slightly penetrating the epidermis at regular intervals, discoid to pulvinate, reddish brown to black, surface scurfy, flat or slightly convex. Ascomata deeply imbedded in stromatic columns, globose, with a long, periphysate, ostiolar neck. Peridium thick, composed of several reddish brown outer layer cells of textura globosa and textura epidermoidea, with pale brown to hyaline internal cells of textura angularis. Paraphyses hypha-like, numerous, tapering towards the apex, not embedded in a gelatinous matrix. Asci 8-spored, unitunicate, broad cylindrical, short-pedicellate, apically rounded or truncate, with a J-, discoid, refractive, apical ring. Ascospores bi-seriate, hyaline, 1-celled, ellipsoidal to cylindrical, smooth-walled. Asexual morph: Undetermined.
Type species: Catabotrys deciduum (Berk. & Broome) Seaver & Waterston, Mycologia 38(2): 184 (1946)
Notes: Catabotrys was erected by Theissen & Sydow (1915) based on Bagnisiella palmarum Pat. and had been placed in Dothideaceae (Dothideae). Petrak (1934) transferred Catabotrys to Hypocreales because its thin-walled asci and bright coloured stroma are similar to the latter. Seaver & Waterston (1946) synonymized an earlier name Hypoxylon deciduum as Catabotrys deciduum. Morphologically, Catabotrys is characterized by superficial, erumpent, multi-loculate stromata, and simple hyaline, 1-celled spores. Catabotrys species have a pantropical distribution, and mainly appear on dead plant material with striking superficial stromata. Wu et al. (2014b) has reported endophytic isolates of Catabotrys from Fortunearia sinensis authorities in China. However, the frequent appearance on dead plant tissue indicates the saprobic nutrition may dominate and occupy a large part of its life cycle, while it may also at first be an endophyte within living plant tissue.
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