Austrobasidium, a new gall-forming genus of Exobasidiaceae (Exobasidiales, Basidiomycota) on Hydrangea serratifolia from Chile

Abstract

Austrobasidium pehueldeni gen. & sp. nov. is described on Hydrangea serratifolia (H. et A.) F. Phil. from Chile. This study adds to the very few reports of Exobasidiales causing formation of stem galls and presents the first species known to parasitise a woody epiphyte and member of Hydrangeaceae (Cornales). A. pehueldeni is compared to the morphologically very similar Laurobasidium lauri (Geyler) Jülich and the systematic position of both species is discussed.