ETYMOLOGY: kapiti, refers to the locally used name, Kapiti Coast, for the west coast north of Wellington. Kapiti is a Maori name, and is used here as a noun in apposition.

NOTES: Of the six species of Stachybotrys that produce more or less spherical conidia, S. crassa (16-18 µm diam.), S. nilagirica (15-28 µm diam.), and S. sphaerospora (11-12 µm diam.) produce conidia of a larger diameter than that found in the above specimens (Marchal 1895; Subramanian 1957; Jong & Davis 1976; Morgan-Jones & Sinclair 1980). The conidia of S. microspora (5-6 µm diam.) and S. ruwenzoriensis (6-8 µm diam.) are both somewhat smaller than the current specimens (Jong & Davis 1976; Matsushima 1985). The conidia of S. globosa are spherical, roughened, black, and 4.5-8 µm diam. Even though S. globosa is the closest in respect to conidial size to the current specimens, the conidia of S. globosa are totally spherical, the conidiophores are often covered in dark granules near the apex, and the whorl of phialides contains only 2-5 individual conidiogenous cells, which are smaller (5.5-9 x 3.5-5.5 µm) than the phialides in the present specimens (Misra & Srivastava 1982).

ETYMOLOGY: waitakere, refers to the type locality, Waitakere Ranges. Waitakere is a Maori name, and is used here as a noun in apposition.

NOTES: Few species of Stachybotrys have broadly ellipsoidal conidia of the dimensions seen in the present specimen. In S. cylindrospora the conidia are ellipsoidal, of similar length (13-16 x 4-6 µm), but differ in conidial width and by the characteristic striations on the conidial walls (Jong & Davis 1976). The conidia of S. kampalensis are morphologically similar to the present specimen, but are smaller (10-14 x 6-7 µm) especially in regard to width (Jong & Davis 1976). The conidia of S. freycinetia are smaller (10-15 x 3.5-5 µm), not as ellipsoidal, and more coarsely verrucose than the current specimen (McKenzie 1991). In S. verrucispora the conidia are of a similar size (11-16.5 x 8-11 µm) but are more coarsely verrucose, and the conidiophores (80-235 x 7-12.5 µm) are much larger (Matsushima 1985).