Kuehneola species (Phragmidiaceae, Pucciniales) on Vitaceae plants

The type specimen of Uredo cissi-debilis on Cissus debilis from Cote d'Ivoire was found to bear aparaphysate telia, in which a chain of two to four teliospores was formed on a short pedicel. The teliospores were thin-walled and germinated in situ. Another fungus identified as U. cissi-debilis on Cayratia gracilis from Sierra Leone was also found to form teliospores similar to those of the Cissus rust fungus in paraphysate telia. The teliospore morphology and host relationships showed their taxonomic affinity to Kuehneola vitis on Ampelocissus latifolia distributed in South Asia. It was concluded that presence or absence of paraphyses in sori and spore morphology, in addition to the assumed host preference, distinguish between the three fungi. New names, K. cissi-debilis comb. nov. and K. deightonii sp. nov., were proposed for the Cissus fungus and the Cayratia fungus, respectively.