Diderma gracile Aramb., Bol. Soc. Argent. Bot.

Treviño-Zevallos, Italo, García-Cunchillos, Iván, Basanta, Diana Wrigley De & Lado, Carlos, 2023, Diversity of Myxomycetes from Peru Part III: The high Andes and the altiplano, Phytotaxa 624 (1), pp. 1-92 : 23-24

48. * Diderma gracile Aramb., Bol. Soc. Argent. Bot. 15(2-3): 179 (1973)

Specimens examined. PERU. Ancash: Recuay, route AN-110, km 25, 42 km southeast of Chavín , 4060 m, 9º42′29”S, 77º17′48”W, 22 May 2014, leaves of Calamagrostis sp. , Lado 23765 (MA-Fungi 95417, USM), Lado 23766 (MA-Fungi 95418, USM). Arequipa: Arequipa, Chiguata , route PE-34C, 31 km east of Chiguata , 4075 m, 16º23′18.1”S, 71º18′59.9”W, 10 Oct 2012, branch and leaves of Polylepis rugulosa, Lado 22330 (MA-Fungi 94859). Chiguata, route PE-34C, 31 km east of Chiguata , 4053 m, 16º23′35.6”S, 71º19′07.2”W, 10 Oct 2012, branch of Senecio sp. , Lado 22336 (MA-Fungi 91218), Lado 22337 (MA-Fungi 94864), branches, leaves and bark of Polylepis rugulosa, Lado 22339a (MA-Fungi 94866). Chiguata, El Symbral, 4259 m, 16°23′26”S, 71°19′03”W, 15 May 2017, on leaf litter of Baccharis tricuneata (prostrate stem), Treviño Myx 73 (MA-Fungi 97921, HSP). Ayacucho: Huamanga, Acocro , route PE-3S, km 452, towards Sachamamba Km 204, 4062 m, 13º25′25”S, 74º02′27”W, 21 Apr 2017, leaves of Festuca orthophylla , puna vegetation, Lado 24946 (MA-Fungi 96143). Chiara , route PE-3S, km 424, Abra Toccto, 4171 m, 13º20′59”S, 74º11′03”W, 21 Apr 2017, leaves of Festuca sp. , Lado 24955 (MA-Fungi 96152), Lado 24956 (MA-Fungi 96153). Huancavelica: Angaraes , Lircay , route PE-26B, km 60, Lircay, 4001 m, 12º57′45”S, 74º44′22”W, 24 Apr 2017, leaves of grasses, Lado 25156 (MA-Fungi 96344). Junin: Concepción , San José de Quero, route PE-24, km 212, Abra Negro Bueno, 4620 m, 12º08′36”S, 75º37′05”W, 28 Apr 2017, leaves of grasses, Lado 25475 (MA-Fungi 96628). Yauli, Santa Bárbara de Carhuacayan , near the junction to Chuqui , route PE-20A, km 183, 4418 m, 11º08′49”S, 76º25′55”W, 21 May 2018, grasses ( Festuca sp. ), Lado 27157 (MA-Fungi 97905), Lado 27158 (MA-Fungi 97906) .

Notes. Similar to Diderma subasteroides M.L. Farr , but in this species, the peridium layers remain attached after dehiscence while the layers are separated even before the spore release in D. gracile ( Arambarri 1973) . It also may be confused with Diderma stellulum M.L. Farr , but the latter has a flattened columella. These records considerably enlarge the known distribution of the species in the southern hemisphere, previously only reported from Austral Argentina ( Wrigley de Basanta et al. 2010).