Neopestalotiopsis ellipsospora and Neopestalotiopsis rhizophorae From Citrus aurantium in China: New Host Records

Abstract

Citrus aurantium L. (Rutaceae) is a widely cultivated citrus species in China, of considerable economic and medicinal importance, and represents a suitable host for diverse endophytic fungi. Although numerous endophytes have been reported from citrus species, species‐level records from C. aurantium remain relatively limited, and many previous studies have relied primarily on morphological identification, which may underestimate fungal diversity. The genus Neopestalotiopsis comprises pestalotioid fungi occurring as endophytes, saprobes, or weak pathogens, and species delimitation within the genus is often challenging due to overlapping morphological characteristics, requiring multilocus sequence data such as ITS, TEF1‐α, and TUB2 for reliable identification. Here, we investigate two pestalotioid isolates obtained from asymptomatic leaves of C. aurantium in Jiangxi Province, China, and identify them as Neopestalotiopsis ellipsospora and N. rhizophorae based on morphological and phylogenetic evidence. To our knowledge, neither species has previously been reported from this host, and they are therefore documented here as new host records.