Identification and pathogenicity of Aurifilum species (Cryphonectriaceae, Diaporthales) on Terminalia species in Southern China

Abstract

The family of Cryphonectriaceae (Diaporthales) contains many important tree pathogens and the hosts are wide-ranging. Tree species of Terminalia were widely planted as ornamental trees alongside city roads and villages in southern China. Recently, stem canker and cracked bark were observed on 2–6 year old Terminalia neotaliala and T. mantaly in several nurseries in Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province, China. Typical conidiomata of Cryphonectriaceae fungi were observed on the surface of the diseased tissue. In this study, we used DNA sequence data (ITS, BT2/BT1, TEF-1α, rpb2) and morphological characteristics to identify the strains from Terminalia trees. Our results showed that isolates obtained in this study represent two species of Aurifilum, one previously described species, A. terminali, and an unknown species, which we described as A. cerciana sp. nov. Pathogenicity tests demonstrated that both A. terminali and A. cerciana were able to infect T. neotaliala and two tested Eucalyptus clones, suggesting the potential for Aurifilum fungi to become new pathogens of Eucalyptus.