Morphological and molecular evidence for a new species of Rhodotus from tropical and subtropical Yunnan, China

Rhodotus has been regarded as a monotypic genus, consisting of only one species, R. palmatus, for a long time. Morphological and phylogenetic studies were carried out on collections of Rhodotus from temperate, subtropical and tropical China. Our phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences of three loci (the internal transcribed spacer, the large subunit nuclear ribosomal RNA, and the translation elongation factor-1 alpha) revealed that there are two phylogenetic species in the northern hemisphere, which is in concordance with morphological traits, supporting the division of Rhodotus into two distinct species. Rhodotus asperior is described as a new species that differs phenotypically from R. palmatus in its broadly ellipsoid to subglobose, more roughened basidiospores, longer cheilocystidia with slightly thickened wall, and its occurrence in tropical and subtropical environments. The discovery of this new taxon indicates Rhodotus has a wider distribution than previously thought.