AUTHOR=Zhou Hao , Guo MeiJun , Zhuo Lan , Yan HuiFang , Sui XiaoNan , Gao Yue , Hou ChengLin 

TITLE=Diversity and taxonomy of the genus Amanita (Amanitaceae, Agaricales) in the Yanshan Mountains, Northern China

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=14

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2023.1226794

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2023.1226794

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Globally, the species of <italic>Amanita</italic> are key components of ectomycorrhizal ecosystems. Some of them are widely known as poisonous or edible fungi. Although many new <italic>Amanita</italic> species from China have been described, the species diversity of Yanshan Mountains remains unknown. We here describe three new species, namely, <italic>A. borealis</italic> sp. nov. (Sect. <italic>Amanita</italic>), <italic>A. brunneola</italic> sp. nov. (Sect. <italic>Caesareae</italic>), and <italic>A. yanshanensis</italic> sp. nov. (Sect. <italic>Validae</italic>), based on morphological observations and molecular phylogenetic analyses. In addition, nine known species, namely, <italic>A. caesareoides</italic> (Sect. <italic>Caesareae</italic>), <italic>A. chiui</italic> (Sect. <italic>Vaginatae</italic>), <italic>A. muscaria</italic> (Sect. <italic>Amanita</italic>), <italic>A. oberwinklerana</italic> (Sect. <italic>Roanokenses</italic>), <italic>A. ovalispora</italic> (Sect. <italic>Vaginatae</italic>), <italic>A. subglobosa</italic> (Sect. <italic>Amanita</italic>), <italic>A. subjunquillea</italic> (Sect. <italic>phalloideae</italic>), <italic>A. vaginata</italic> var. <italic>vaginata</italic> (Sect. <italic>Vaginatae</italic>), and <italic>A. virosa</italic> (Sect. <italic>phalloideae</italic>), were reported from Yanshan Mountains for the first time. Our results emphasize that China has a high diversity of <italic>Amanita</italic> species and that additional studies are required to understand the exact species number. These findings play a crucial role in <italic>Amanita</italic> toxin research and ecological conservation. This study investigated the areas where <italic>Amanita</italic> species-related research is lacking. The study also attempted to better understand <italic>Amanita</italic> distribution and thus contribute to related research. This study enriches the species diversity of <italic>Amanita</italic> in Yanshan Mountains and offers additional data supporting the macrofungal systematics, toxin research, and diversity and ecological studies of <italic>Amanita</italic> in future studies.</p>