Two species of sooty mould-like taxa, were obtained from living leaves of Coffea arabica plants collected in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand. Differences in phenotypic and phylogenetic characteristics based on combined large subunit nuclear ribosomal DNA and internal transcribed spacer sequences indicated that the two isolates represent two novel species (Phaeosaccardinula coffeicola and Trichomerium chiangmaiensis) within the order Chaetothyriales. Phaeosaccardinula coffeicola (Chaetothyriaceae) is distinguished morphologically from related species by its smaller asci and ascospores. Trichomerium chiangmaiensis (Trichomeriaceae) is morphologically distinguishable from its phylogenetically related species by its smaller conidial arms. Detailed taxonomic descriptions and illustrations of the new species are provided.

Species of Paramyrothecium that are reported as plant pathogens and cause leaf spot or leaf blight have been reported on many commercial crops worldwide. In 2019, during a survey of fungi causing leaf spots on plants in Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son provinces, northern Thailand, 16 isolates from 14 host species across nine plant families were collected. A new species Paramyrothecium vignicola sp. nov. was identified based on morphology and concatenated (ITS, cmdA, rpb2, and tub2) phylogeny. Further, P. breviseta and P. foliicola represented novel geographic records to Thailand, while P. eichhorniae represented a novel host record (Psophocarpus sp., Centrosema sp., Aristolochia sp.). These species were confirmed to be the causal agents of the leaf spot disease through pathogenicity assay. Furthermore, cross pathogenicity tests on Coffea arabica L., Commelina benghalensis L., Glycine max (L.) Merr., and Dieffenbachia seguine (Jacq.) Schott revealed multiple host ranges for these pathogens. Further research is required into the host–pathogen relationship of Paramyrothecium species that cause leaf spot and their management. Biotic and abiotic stresses caused by climate change may affect plant health and disease susceptibility. Hence, proper identification and monitoring of fungal communities in the environment are important to understand emerging diseases and for implementation of disease management strategies.

Grasses are cosmopolitan yet an important component in ecology. The current human population readily relies on grasses as many Poaceae species provide staple carbohydrate sources and staple feed to livestock. Ecologically grass plays a vital role as a pioneer inhabitant as well as sustaining immense biodiversity within the community. Fungi play a pivotal role in maintaining and shaping the grass communities. Fungi occur on grasses as commensals, saprobes, and pathogens. Each fungal community associated with grasses is responsible for the specific ecological property of the grass community, either in silviculture or polyculture. Hence, grass fungi drawn much attention from researchers. The taxonomy of grass fungi dates back to 1800s. However, up-to-date collective worldwide account for grass fungi is still lacking. In thi study, we compiled all the taxonomically valid data of Ascomycetous grass fungi in a checklist. The section Ascomycota comprises 3,165 fungal species among 207 families, 70 orders, and 11 classes. The majority of the species are represented by Dothideomycetes (1,367) and Sordariomycetes (944). This study is the first worldwide checklist of Ascomycetous grass fungi.

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Fungi in Cercospora and Pseudocercospora are commonly known as cercosporoid fungi. In the current study, a cercosporoid fungus was isolated from Mangifera indica from Chiang Mai, Thailand. The isolate was identifi ed as Pseudocercospora mangiferae sp. nov. based on morphology and ITS, act, tef1-α and rpb2 multigene phylogeny. Further, this is the fi rst report of a Pseudocercospora species on M. indica in Thailand.