Taxonomy of asexual microfungus Periconia on Phoenix in India

The anamorphic fungus genus Periconia is worldwide in distribution and causes foliar disease on plants mostly in tropical and subtropical regions. This study presents the description and illustration of P. palmivora discovered on leaves of Phoenix dactylifera (Palmae/Arecaceae) from Terai forest region of Uttar Pradesh, India. The taxonomic determination was based on morphological characteristics of the fungus. The proposed novel species is entirely different from previously described P. tirupatiensis, having shorter, unbranched and smooth conidiophores and longer and smooth conidia. A key of Periconia species reported on Phoenix is provided. Descriptions and nomenclatural details were deposited in MycoBank (www.MycoBank.org).