Microthecium fimicola

Microthecium fimicola
Ascospores; scale bar: 5 μm
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Ascomycota
Class: Sordariomycetes
Order: Coronophorales
Family: Ceratostomataceae
Genus: Microthecium
Species:
M. fimicola
Binomial name
Microthecium fimicola
(E.C.Hansen) Y.Marín, Stchigel, Guarro & Cano (2018)
Synonyms[1]
  • Melanospora fimicola E.C.Hansen (1877)
  • Sphaeroderma fimicola (E.C.Hansen) Sacc. (1883)
  • Sphaerodes fimicola (E.C.Hansen) P.F.Cannon & D.Hawksw. (1982)
  • Sphaeroderma hulseboschii Oudem. (1886)
  • Melanospora hulseboschii (Oudem.) Doguet (1955)

Microthecium fimicola is a species of ascomycete fungus in the family Ceratostomataceae.[2] It is characterised by ascomata (sexual fruiting bodies) that have a distinct opening (an ostiole) and by dark, thick-walled ascospores whose surfaces are coarsely net-like (reticulate). Each spore has a pronounced, pointed germ pore at both ends, a feature used to separate it from similar species. Among the Microthecium species that share the same combination of an ostiole and reticulate spores (M. internum and M. quadrangulatum) M. fimicola is distinguished mainly by spore shape: its ascospores are typically lemon-shaped (citriform), whereas those of M. internum are more spindle-shaped and those of M. quadrangulatum are fusiform. Some isolates of M. fimicola have also been observed to produce bulbils (small, compact vegetative propagules), a trait that was not reported in earlier accounts of the species.[3]

References

  1. ^ "GSD Species Synonymy. Current Name: Microthecium fimicola (E.C. Hansen) Y. Marín, Stchigel, Guarro & Cano, in Marin-Felix, Guarro, Cano-Lira, García, Miller & Stchigel, MycoKeys 44: 108 (2018)". Species Fungorum. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  2. ^ "Microthecium fimicola (E.C. Hansen) Y. Marín, Stchigel, Guarro & Cano". Catalogue of Life. Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  3. ^ Marin-Felix, Yasmina; Guarro, Josep; Cano-Lira, José F.; García, Dania; Miller, Andrew N.; Stchigel, Alberto M. (2018). "Melanospora (Sordariomycetes, Ascomycota) and its relatives". MycoKeys. 44: 81–122. doi:10.3897/mycokeys.44.29742. PMC 6306512. PMID 30598621.