Chaetothyriaceae


The Chaetothyriaceae are a family of ascomycetous fungi within the order Chaetothyriales and within the class Eurotiomycetes. A 2012 molecular analysis of specimens collected from northern Thailand revealed three new species in the family.

Lichenization

The first known lichen-forming species in Chaetothyriaceae, Ceramothyrium ryukyuense, was described in 2024 from Okinawa Island in southern Japan. It was found growing on a living palm leaf in a subtropical coastal forest. The species is characterized by minute, brown ascomata and small, predominantly one-septate. It differs from non-lichenized Ceramothyrium species, such as C. paiveae and C. philodendri, in its smaller asci and simpler spore structure. Phylogenetic analyses based on nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences placed C. ryukyuense as a sister species to C. exiguum. The species is associated with a from the Trentepohliales, marking the first confirmed case of lichenization within the family.

Genera

  • Actinocymbe
  • Ainsworthia
  • Almeidaea
  • Ceramothyrium
  • Chaetothyrium
  • Chaetothyriomyces
  • Euceramia
  • Microcallis
  • Mycostevensonia
  • Phaeosaccardinula
  • Treubiomyces
  • ''Yatesula''