Hidden treasures of herbaria - even small collections contain a wealth of diversity: the powdery mildews of the North Carolina State Larry F. Grand Mycological Herbarium.

ABSTRACT: The occurrence of cryptic species is well documented in fungi but the extent of their diversity is not fully understood. This study assessed the fungal diversity within a part of the Larry F. Grand Mycological Herbarium (NCSLG), a small, well-maintained collection at North Carolina State University, with a focus on the powdery mildew fungi (Erysiphaceae). Erysiphaceae were selected due to their economic impact as plant pathogens and availability of extensive DNA sequence data for multiple barcode loci. Our research objectives included determining the number of phylogenetic species compared with those identified morphologically, and to identify undescribed species. We generated sequence data for 220 of the 299 powdery mildew specimens (73% success rate) in the herbarium, which

SUBMITTER: LaGreca S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12256997 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature