''Paraphaeosphaeria pilleata'' is a species of

fungus A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...

in the

Lophiostomataceae The Lophiostomataceae are a family of fungi in the order Pleosporales. Taxa have a widespread distribution, especially in temperate regions, and are saprobic or necrotrophic A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of ...

family. The species fruits exclusively in the lower parts of the culms of the black needlerush ('' Juncus roemerianus''). It is found on the Atlantic Coast of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Taxonomy and naming

The species was first described by mycologists Jan Kohlmeyer, Brigitte Volkmann-Kohlmeyer, and Ove Eriksson in a 1996 ''

Mycological Research ''Fungal Biology'' is a scientific journal that publishes peer-reviewed papers on all aspects of basic and applied research of the fungi, including lichens, yeasts, oomycetes, and slime moulds. A publication of the British Mycological Society, it w ...

'' publication. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

is derived from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''pilleatus'' ("capped"), and refers to the small cap on the top of the

ascus An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera or s ...

Description

The roughly spherical to ellipsoidal leathery

fruit bodies The sporocarp (also known as fruiting body, fruit body or fruitbody) of fungi is a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures, such as basidia or asci, are borne. The fruitbody is part of the sexual phase of a fungal life cyc ...

(ascomata) are 120–300

μm The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Unit ...

high by 150–350 μm wide, with a short neck, and an

ostiole An ''ostiole'' is a small hole or opening through which algae or fungi release their mature spores. The word is a diminutive of "ostium", "opening". The term is also used in higher plants, for example to denote the opening of the involuted ...

(opening). The neck is 15–50 μm high, 42–70 μm in diameter, cylindrical to conical, and dark brown. The ascomata are immersed in the hard cortex of the

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County People *Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman * Michel Host ...

plant, with bases embedded in the pith. The ascomata are light brown in color, but darker around the ostiole. They are arranged in groups. The ascomata lack

paraphyses Paraphyses are erect sterile filament-like support structures occurring among the reproductive apparatuses of fungi, ferns, bryophytes and some thallophytes. The singular form of the word is paraphysis. In certain fungi, they are part of the fe ...

; the ostiolar canal is formed when pseudoparenchymatous cells in the center of the neck dissolve or tear apart. In mature ascomata, the tips of the pseudo

reach into the canal. The peridium is 8–16 μm thick, and made of 3–5 layers of brown, thin-walled cells with large lumina that eventually merge with

hyaline A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from el, ὑάλινος, translit=hyálinos, lit=transparent, and el, ὕαλος, translit=hýalos, lit=crystal, glass, label=none. Histopathology Hyaline cartilage is ...

(translucent) cells to form a ''textura angularis''—a pseudoparenchyma of very densely packed cells that appear angular in

cross section Cross section may refer to: * Cross section (geometry) ** Cross-sectional views in architecture & engineering 3D *Cross section (geology) * Cross section (electronics) * Radar cross section, measure of detectability * Cross section (physics) **Abs ...

. The hamathecium (a term referring to all

hypha A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one or ...

e that develop between

asci ASCI or Asci may refer to: * Advertising Standards Council of India * Asci, the plural of ascus, in fungal anatomy * Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative * American Society for Clinical Investigation * Argus Sour Crude Index * Association of ...

of the

hymenium The hymenium is the tissue layer on the hymenophore of a fungal fruiting body where the cells develop into basidia or asci, which produce spores. In some species all of the cells of the hymenium develop into basidia or asci, while in others some ...

) comprises unbranched

pseudoparaphyses {{Short pages monitor