New to Nature No 43: Coltricia globispora

Fungi play hugely important roles in most terrestrial ecosystems, including recycling nutrients as major decomposers of plant materials. Fewer than 100,000 species of fungi have been discovered and described, while mycologists estimate that 1.5 million species exist. Coltricia globispora is a new "white rot" fungus discovered in the Parque Natural Municipal de Porto Velho, Brazil. The family it belongs to, Hymenochaetaceae, includes wood-rotters, some plant pathogens, and a few documented ectomycorrhizal species that are symbionts of roots of plants. This is only the second species in its genus with spherical spores, the basis for the species name globispora. Quentin Wheeler is director of the International Institute for Species Exploration, Arizona State University