Bovista khorchinensis T. Bau & Q.R. Liu, 2025

Bovista khorchinensis T. Bau & Q.R. Liu , sp. nov. ( Figure. 2 View FIGURE 2 and 3 View FIGURE 3 )

MycoBank number: —MB856513

Diagnosis: —Basidiomata globose to subglobose, 12–22 mm in height, 10–20 mm in diameter. Exoperidium detaches at maturity and forms a persistent sandy cushion at the base.Endoperidium papery-leathery, smooth, and ranges from black-red to signal brown, with a matte finish and a neatly edged apical pore at the top. Capillitium of Bovista - type with main stems up to 17 μm, medium thick to thick walls, pore is densely covered, septa are lacking. Basidiospores Q m =1.07 (±0.04), globose to subglobose, smooth in light microscope and finely verrucose in SEM, with a well-preserved, pedicel 11–15 μm long.

Etymology: — “khorchinensis ” refers to the area where the type specimen was collected.

Type: — CHINA. Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region: Tongliao City, Khorchin left back banner, Nugustai Town, on the sand in Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica Litv. forest, 43°23′48′′N, 122°24′53′′E, alt. 311 m, 3 June 2023, T. Bau & Qianru Liu ( FJAU 71982, holotype!).

Description: —Basidiomata globose to subglobose, 12–22 mm in height, 10–20 mm in diameter. Exoperidium detaches at maturity and forms a persistent sandy cushion at the base. Endoperidium papery-leathery, smooth, and ranges from black-red (RAL3007) to signal brown (RAL8002), with a neatly edged roundness apical pore at the top. Gleba at maturity chestnut brown (RAL8015). Subgleba absent.

Capillitium of Bovista - type with main stems up to 17 μm, medium thick to thick walls (1–3μm), intertwined and branches abundant, elastic, pore is densely covered in contact with 5% KOH solution, the main part is rare, the more narrow the pore density is greater, particularly on thinner hyphae, septa are lacking. Paracapillitium absent. Basidiospores (60/3/2) (3.6–) 3.7–4.4 (–4.8) × (3.8–) 4–4.7 (–4.9) μm in diameter, Q=(1.02–) 1.03–1.12 (–1.15), Q m =1.07 (±0.04), globose to subglobose, sometimes ovoid, smooth in LM and finely verrucose in SEM, containing a big oil droplets, with a well-preserved pedicel 11–15 μm long, densely ornamented coarse minute verrucae under scanning electron microscope.

Habitat: —Growing on the sand in Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica Litv. forest in summer (June to July).

Known distribution: —Currently, distributed only in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China.

Additional specimen examined (paratype): — CHINA. Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region: Tongliao City, Forest Park, on the sand in Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica Litv. forest, 43°35′22′′N, 122°16′49′′E, alt. 191 m, 21 July 2023, T. Bau & Qianru Liu (FJAU 71983).