On bark. Waima (338).

CASUARINACEAE. Casuarina equisetifolia: Auckland, Silverdale. CONIFERAE. Agathis australis: Auckland, Te Moehau, Coromandel Peninsula, 350 m. Phyllocladus trichomanoides: Auckland, Ngaiotonga Ranges, 200 m. MIMOSACEAE. Acacia melanoxylon: Auckland, Silverdale. MORACEAE. Ficus eugenioides: Queensland, Mt. Glorious. MYRSINACEAE. Myrsine salicina: Auckland, Waitakere Dam, 300 m. MYRTACEAE. Eucalyptus viminalis: Auckland, Orewa, 10 m. Eugenia smithii: Auckland, Parnell. Leptospermum ericoides: Auckland, Manaia, Whangarei Heads, 30 m; Little Barrier Island; Kawau Island, 10 m; Spragues Hill, Henderson, 230 m; Swanson, 120 m; Te Moehau, Coromandel Peninsula, 300 m; Mt. Te Aroha, 320 m. Leptospermum scoparium: Auckland, Moturoa Island, Bay of Islands. Metrosideros excelsa: Auckland, Kawau Island; Cornwallis, 20 m. Metrosideros robusta: Auckland, Te Moehau, Coromandel Peninsula, 170 m. PROTEACEAE. Banksia spp.: New South Wales, Arakoon; Sydney. UNKNOWN HOSTS. Queensland, Danbulla; Koombooloomba; Imbil. New South Wales, Sydney; Hornsby; Lisarow; Hawkesbury River; Kendall; Melanganee, near Casino; Bullahdelah.

Hymenophore pileate, annual, coriaceous. Pilei applanate, flabeiliform, sometimes umbonate or effused-reflexed, frequently imbricate or fused laterally, 3-7 cm long, with a radius of 2-5 cm; pileus surface coloured various shades of brown.ferruginous, umber, or sepia.concentrically sulcate and zoned with bands of different shades of brown hairs, often radiately sulcate, sometimes radiately plicate, coarsely tomentose, often strigose, at length becoming naked and black; margin lobed, fulvous when young; hymenial surface duplicating irregularities of the pileus surface, radiately ridged, concentrically sulcate, umber, date-brown, or plum colour, even, tardily creviced when old, margin concolorous or lighter. Context dark umber and glistening in section, to 200 µm thick, of closely compacted often cemented parallel hyphae; cortex of darker, parallel, cemented hyphae; skeletal hyphae 4-5 µm diameter, walls 1-2 µm thick, reddish-brown; generative hyphae 2.5-3 µm diameter, walls 0.25 µm thick, tinted yellow. Setal layer to 80 µm deep, of 2-3 rows of scattered setae, some projecting to 35 µm; setae subulate, 35-55 x 5-7 µm, walls naked, rich chestnut, lumena narrow. Hymenial layer to 30 µm deep, a dense palisade of basidia and paraphyses. Basidia subclavate, 16-22 x 4-4.5 µm, bearing 4 spores; sterigmata arcuate, slender, to 4 µm long. Paraphyses cylindrical, 10-16 x 3.5-4 µm, walls tinted yellow. Spores elliptical, apiculate, 3.5-4 x 2-2.5 µm, walls smooth, hyaline, 0.1 µm thick.

DISTRIBUTION: Java, Malaya, Ceylon, India, Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand.

HABITAT: Bark or decorticated wood of dead branches and stems associated with a coarse pocket rot.

Resembling Stereum illudens in general appearance, the species may be identified readily since it is the only Hymenochaete present in the region with applanate or flabelliform pilei. The pileus surface is coarsely tomentose, concentrically sulcate and zoned with hairs of different shades of brown, radiately sulcate, and sometimes plicate. In young plants the tomentum is usually aggregated into strigose tufts, but as plants age, hyphae become lax and intertwined to form a dense mat which may attain a depth of 0.5 mm. Finally the tomentum tends to disappear, weathered plants sometimes becoming naked and almost black. The hymenial surface reflects the configuration of the pileus surface and exhibits a wide range of colours. At first ferruginous, it soon becomes date-brown, often with a plum-coloured bloom, and finally dark umber. Under a lens, sections appear dark brown and glistening. The context is composed of stout parallel hyphae, closely compacted and cemented, with a darker cortex formed from parallel hyphae and bearing the abhymenial hairs. The setal layer is narrow and composed of two or three overlapping rows of small setae embedded among irregular erect hyphae. Setae are subulate with often a stout base turned at an angle and parallel with the context hyphae. Spores are scanty and found only near margins of growing plants.
Choice of a specific name lies between H. villosa and H. nigricans. Both were published (as Stereum) on the same page by Leveille. Bresadola claimed they were applied to the same species, but this I have not been able to verify since the types have not been examined. Collections match an authentic Leveille specimen of Stereum villosum in Kew herbarium; and Petch forwarded specimens to Kew herbarium from Ceylon, named H. nigricans, which are of the same species. The combination Hymenochaete villosa was published by Bresadola six years before he used H. nigricans; and as the latter is inappropriate, save for old weathered plants, I have preferred H. villosa, a combination also used by Wakefield (1915, p. 368) for an Australian collection in Kew herbarium.
Distribution is based on collections examined in Kew herbarium, filed under H. nigricans, H. phaea (type ex Bay of Islands, N.Z.), H. spadicea (type ex Ceylon), H. strigosa (type ex Ceylon), and H. villosa. Three collections from Tasmania in Kew herbarium are filed under H. rubiginosa.

TYPE LOCALITY: Java.

[Notes from Kew Type specimen, PRJ 2010] Kew images.