Notes, outline and divergence times of Basidiomycota

TLDR

Basidiomycota is a major fungal phylum, second only to Ascomycota in species richness. This work compiles all currently accepted basidiomycete genera into a single reference. The authors catalog each genus with taxonomic and ecological details, perform three multi‑gene phylogenetic analyses of the three subphyla, and estimate divergence times for 168 families using 632 species. The study lists 1,928 genera (1,263 synonyms) across 241 families, 68 orders, 18 classes, and 4 subphyla, and reports subphylum divergence times of 406–430 Mya, class times of 211–383 Mya, order times of 99–323 Mya, and family divergences ranging 27–178 Mya for Agaricomycotina, 85–222 Mya for Pucciniomycotina, and 79–177 Mya for Ustilaginomycotina, supporting previous estimates and aiding taxonomic resolution.

Abstract

Abstract The Basidiomycota constitutes a major phylum of the kingdom Fungi and is second in species numbers to the Ascomycota. The present work provides an overview of all validly published, currently used basidiomycete genera to date in a single document. An outline of all genera of Basidiomycota is provided, which includes 1928 currently used genera names, with 1263 synonyms, which are distributed in 241 families, 68 orders, 18 classes and four subphyla. We provide brief notes for each accepted genus including information on classification, number of accepted species, type species, life mode, habitat, distribution, and sequence information. Furthermore, three phylogenetic analyses with combined LSU, SSU, 5.8s, rpb1, rpb2, and ef1 datasets for the subphyla Agaricomycotina, Pucciniomycotina and Ustilaginomycotina are conducted, respectively. Divergence time estimates are provided to the family level with 632 species from 62 orders, 168 families and 605 genera. Our study indicates that the divergence times of the subphyla in Basidiomycota are 406–430 Mya, classes are 211–383 Mya, and orders are 99–323 Mya, which are largely consistent with previous studies. In this study, all phylogenetically supported families were dated, with the families of Agaricomycotina diverging from 27–178 Mya, Pucciniomycotina from 85–222 Mya, and Ustilaginomycotina from 79–177 Mya. Divergence times as additional criterion in ranking provide additional evidence to resolve taxonomic problems in the Basidiomycota taxonomic system, and also provide a better understanding of their phylogeny and evolution.