Cortinarius campanianomalus M.L. Xie, T.Z. Wei & Y. Li, 2025

Cortinarius campanianomalus M.L. Xie, T.Z. Wei & Y. Li , sp. nov. MB 843746 View Materials . Figs 2D, E View Fig , 6D View Fig , 7D View Fig .

Etymology: From the Latin campanus-, bell, referring to the shape of the pileus and associated with sect. Anomali .

Typus: China, Xizang Autonomous Region, Linzhi City, Sejila Mountain, in Abies georgei var. smithii forest with Rhododendron , alt. 4120 m, 5 Sep. 2020, M.L. Xie (holotype HMJAU 48748).

Pileus 10–53 mm diam., campanulate when young, then expanded with a broadly umbonate, margin becoming ± wavy, surface somewhat viscid and weakly hygrophanous when moist, wrinkled when mature, at first surface with patches of yellowish universal veil remnants, dull greyish orange to brown. Lamellae subadnate to adnexed, subdistant, violet white to greyish violet when young, later greyish orange to brown, edges paler, even. Stipe 45–90 mm long, 4–9 mm thick above, cylindrical, surface yellowish fibrillose, bluish tinges at the upper part, basal mycelium whitish. Universal veil yellowish, forming fibrils on the pileus and sock like sheath on the stipe. Context thin, hygrophanous when moist, stipe hollow, greyish brown with bluish tinges at first, especially at the stipe apex. Odour radish. Taste mild. Basidiospores (8.1–)8.7–9.7(–11.6) × (6.2–)6.6–7.7(–8.7) μm, Q = 1.14–1.48, Xav. = 9.2–9.4 × 7.1–7.2 μm, Qav. = 1.31–1.32, broadly ellipsoid to ellipsoid, rather weakly, finely verrucose. Basidia clavate, 4-spored, hyaline to subhyaline, rarely yellowish to yellowish brown. Lamellar edge fertile. Pileipellis duplex: epicutis well developed, hyphae parallel, hyaline or yellowish to yellowish brown, 4–11 μm wide, smooth to slightly encrusted; hypocutis well developed, hyphae 10–30 μm wide, hyaline to yellowish, somewhat cellular. Clamp connections present.

Ecology and distribution: Gregarious in moist moss under coniferous forests. Known from Sichuan, Taiwan and Xizang of China.

Additional specimens examined: China, Sichuan Province, Li County, Bipenggou, nearby Zhuomatan, in Pinus dominated forest with Rhododendron , alt. 3616 m, 23 Aug. 2015, T.Z. Wei & D. Wang, HMAS 254393, HMAS 254399, HMAS 275083, HMAS 275110; Xizang Autonomous Region, Linzhi City, Sejila Mountain, in Abies georgei var. smithii forest with Rhododendron , alt. 4250 m, 30 Aug. 2019, M.L. Xie & J.Z. Li, HMJAU 48692, HMJAU 48693.

Additional nrITS sequences data from public sequence repositories: China, Taiwan Province, Hehuan Mountain, KC679831 View Materials , wii1A4sp9 from ectomycorrhiza samples of Abies kawakamii and Tsuga chinensis var. formosana mixed forest, as Cortinarius sp. in GenBank.

Notes: Cortinarius campanianomalus is characterized by its slender basidiomata, campanulate, weakly hygrophanous, ± wrinkled pileus, a yellowish universal veil, ellipsoid basidiospores, and alpine coniferous habitats. Bluish tinges are very slight and only present on the lamellae and stipe apex when young. In the phylogenetic analyses, this species clustered together with C. latiodistributus and C. clackamasensis with a strong support in BI analysis but not in ML. Cortinarius latiodistributus is the most closely related species of C. campanianomalus from which it differs by 20 substitutions and indel positions in nrITS region, with a similarity of 96.7 %.