Dismantling Melaspileaceae: a first phylogenetic study of Buelliella, Hemigrapha, Karschia, Labrocarpon and Melaspilea

Melaspileaceae is a heterogeneous group of Ascomycota including lichenized, lichenicolous and saprobic fungi. A first phylogenetic study of Melaspileaceae is presented and is based on mtSSU and nuLSU sequence data. We obtained 49 new sequences for 28 specimens representing 15 species. The genera Buelliella, Hemigrapha, Karschia, Labrocarpon and Melaspilea s. str. are included in a molecular phylogeny for the first time. Melaspileaceae is recovered as polyphyletic, with members placed in two main lineages of Dothideomycetes. Melaspilea s. str. is included in Eremithallales. Eremithallaceae is placed in synonymy with Melaspileaceae. The genus Encephalographa is placed in Melaspileaceae. The genera Buelliella, Karschia, Labrocarpon and several members of Melaspilea are demonstrated to belong to Asterinales, while Hemigrapha is confirmed in this order. The genera Melaspileella, Melaspileopsis, Stictographa are reinstated for former Melaspilea species now placed in Asterinales. Karschia cezannei is described as new, and the new combinations Melaspilea costaricensis, M. enteroleuca, M. urceolata, Melaspileella proximella and Melaspileopsis diplasiospora are made. Melaspileaceae as newly defined includes lichenized and saprobic species. The lichenicolous and saprobic life styles form different intermixed lineages in Asterinales that do not include lichenized taxa. The phylogenetic data provide a first framework for dismantling further the genus Melaspilea for which most of the species are expected to belong to Asterinales.