Morchella montana Q. Qin & X. H. Du, 2025

Morchella montana Q. Qin & X. H. Du sp. nov.

Figs 2 K, L View Figure 2 , 9 B View Figure 9

Etymology.

The specific epithet montana is derived from the Latin adjective montānus, - a, - um (“ of the mountains ”). It refers to the frequent occurrence of this species at high elevations and its type locality in Chongqing, which is widely known as “ Mountain City ” in China.

Diagnosis.

Middle- to late-appearing, middle-sized morel, characterized by an oval or bluntly conical pileus with deep, small, and very dense pits in irregular sizes and shapes, and with rich vertical and transecting horizontal ridges, yellowish at maturity. Stipe whitish to yellowish, middle length, glabrous or finely mealy with yellowish granules. Paraphyses slender, with slightly inflated at the upper middle place. Occurring under Castanopsis sp.

Type.

China • 1; Chongqing Municipality , Pengshui County. 9 Apr 2023, Q. Qin ( FCNU 1206 — holotype preserved in the Fungal Herbarium of Chongqing Normal University). GenBank: ITS = PV 156371 ; EF 1 - a = PV 227277 ; RPB 1 = PV 227221 ; RPB 2 = PV 175868 .

Description.

Ascomata 82 mm high. Hymenophore 24 mm high; 38 mm wide at the widest point; ovoid with a conical apex; light yellowish-brown to beige; pitted and ridged, with 10–12 primary vertical ridges, some shorter secondary vertical ridges, and transecting horizontal ridges, forming a typical morel-like structure. Ridges thick, sometimes sharpened, finely tomentose or glabrous; grayish. Pits asymmetrical, relatively deep; primarily elongated vertically; glabrous or finely tomentose; pale yellowish or nearly whitish. Stipe cylindrical, slightly inflated in the lower half; 58 mm high; 15 mm wide; glabrous or finely mealy with yellowish white granules; whitish to pale yellowish. Context whitish; 1–2 mm thick in the hollow hymenophore; sometimes slightly chambered near the base. Sterile inner surface whitish and pubescent.

Ascospores measuring (13.65 -) 15.08–20.41 (- 20.64) × (8.74 -) 9.15–13.20 (- 13.73) μm (Q = 1.32–1.95, Qm = 1.63 ± 0.15), elliptical to ovoid, with regular longitudinal ornamentation; contents homogeneous. Asci cylindrical, eight-spored, (201.40 -) 218.80–310.13 (- 312.45) × (17.09 -) 17.45–23.98 μm. Paraphyses, cylindrical in shape, apices usually rounded or subclavate but occasionally clavate, septate, (103.80 -) 105.75–149.21 (- 155.62) × (6.62 -) 7.15–15.83 (- 16.91) μm, but difficult to measure their length. Elements on sterile ridges (71.16 -) 72.25–124.97 (- 133.54) × (9.69 -) 10.11–18.38 (- 19.56) μm, septate. The number of ascospores in asci observed to vary between one and eight.

Habitat.

Solitary on the ground under Castanopsis sp.

Distribution.

This species is only recorded from southwestern China.

Other specimens examined.

China • 1; Chongqing Municipality , Wuxi County. 27 Apr 2024, Q. Qin ( FCNU 1328 — paratype preserved in the Fungal Herbarium of Chongqing Normal University) .

Comments.

This morphologically distinct species corresponds to the previously reported phylospecies Morchella sp. Mes- 20 determined by multi-gene phylogenetic analysis in Du et al. (2012 a).