Abstract:
A survey of Penicillium in the fynbos biome from South Africa resulted in the isolation of 61 species
of which 29 were found to be new. In this study we focus on Penicillium section Canescentia, providing a phylogenetic re-evaluation based on the analysis of partial beta-tubulin (BenA), calmodulin (CaM) and RNA polymerase
II second largest subunit (RPB2) sequence data. Based on phylogenies we show that five fynbos species are new
and several previously assigned synonyms of P. canescens and P. janczewskii should be considered as distinct
species. As such, we provide descriptions for the five new species and introduce the new name P. elizabethiae for
the illegitimate P. echinatum. We also update the accepted species list and synonymies of section Canescentia
species and provide a review of extrolites produced by these species.
