Two species, X. spectabilis and X. illudens were excluded from Xylobolus based on our analyses. Stereum spectabile nested within the Stereum clade with strong support, and X. illudens was placed neither in Stereum nor Xylobolus. [X. illudens based on sequences from CBS 360.36, with unknown origin, PRJ]

ARALIACEAE. Neopanax arboreum: Wellington, Tongariro River, Kaimanawa Ranges, 600 m. CONIFERAE. Agathis australis: Auckland, Kawau Island. Dacrydium cupressinum: Auckland, Anawhata Road, Waitakere Ranges, 300 m; Rangemore Track, Waitakere Ranges, 300 m; Upper Piha Valley, 280 m; Spragues Hill, Henderson, 100 m; Mangere, 15 m; Waikaretu, 120 m; Cornwallis, 20 m; Mamaku Forest, 600 m; Rotorua, 400 m. Wellington, Weraroa, 25 m; Hutt Valley, 80 m; Kelburn, 120 m. Otago, Horseshoe Bay, Stewart Island. Podocarpus ferrugineus: Auckland, Waipoua Kauri Forest, 120 m. Podocarpus spicatus: Nelson, Stoke, 10 m. CUNONIACEAE. Weinmannia racemosa: Auckland, Earthquake Flat, Rotorua, 700 m. EPACRIDACEAE. Cyathodes fasciculata: Auckland, Purewa Bush, 35 m. FAGACEAE. Nothofagus cliffortioides: Nelson, Staircase Creek, Reefton, 700 m. Nothofagus fusca: Auckland, Mamaku Forest, 600 m. Nothofagus menziesii: Auckland, Lake Waikaremoana, 1,190 m. LAURACEAE. Beilschmiedia tawa: Auckland, Mt. Albert, 80 m. MYRTACEAE. Eucalyptus globulus: Auckland, Silverdale, 60 m; Titirangi, 250; Waitomo, 100 m; Whakarewarewa, 400 m. Taranaki, Inglewood, 230 m. Eucalyptus macrorhyncha: Victoria, Woodend, 700 m. Eucalyptus spp.: South Australia, Mt. Gambier. Western Australia, Narrogin. Leptospermum ericoides: Auckland, Parahaki, Whangarei, 180 m; Western Hills, Whangarei, 120 m; Kawau Island, 10 m; Swanson, 120 m; Spragues Hill, Henderson, 100 m. Leptospermum scoparium: Auckland, Kumeu, 100 m; Mt. Albert, 80 m; Mt. Te Aroha, 400 m; Earthquake Flat, Rotorua, 500 m. Metrosideros robusta: Wellington, Wanganui, 10 m. RUBIACEAE. Coprosma lucida: Auckland, Waipoua Kauri Forest, 160 m. SAXIFRAGACEAE. Carpodetus serratus: Auckland, Kauaeranga Valley, Thames, 70 m. Quintinia serrata: Westland, Pukekura. UNKNOWN HOSTS. Queensland, Danbulla; South Australia, Long Gully, Augaston, Pt. McDonnell. Adelaide; Mt. Lofty; Quorn, Flinders Range; Clare; Kinchina; Myponga; Kuitpo; National Park; Kangaroo Island; Warren Reservoir; Encounter Bay. Victoria, Staughton Vale; Ararat. New South Wales, Sydney, Lisarow; Wahroonga National Park, Hill Top, The Rock; Kurrajong Mountains, Bumberry; Milson Island, Kew. Western Australia, Pemberton. Tasmania, Port Arthur, Browns River.

Hymenophore annual or perennial, coriaceous, sessile. Pilei effused-reflexed, flabelliform, umbonate, or resupinate, often laterally connate with a broad resupinate base and reflexed margins, 1-3 cm radius, 1-15 cm wide; pileus surface chestnut or vandyke-brown with a greyish base, coarsely strigose-hirsute, concentrically sulcate and zoned with various shades of brown hairs, sometimes complicate with lateral margins infolded, frequently radiately sulcate; margins acute, plane, concolorous or darker, entire; hymenial surface showing irregular zoning and sulcate markings of the surface, even, plum, violaceous, or lead colour, or tinted heliotrope or violet, finally deeply creviced often around the centres of attachment. Context ferruginous or fuscous, sometimes stratose, 0.3-1 mm thick, commonly 0.3-0.5 mm, of radiately arranged parallel hyphae, with a coloured cortex beneath abhymenial hairs and a colour zone beneath the hymenial layer; skeletal hyphae 4-6 µm diameter, walls 1 µm thick, tinted yellow-brown, darker when old; generative hyphae 2.5-3 µm diameter, walls 0.2 µm thick, hyaline, without clamp connections. Acanthophyses projecting slightly, fusiform or cylindrical with acuminate or rounded apices, 4-5 µm diameter, bearing on the apical region 5-15 digitate processes 0.5-4 µm long. Hymenial layer to 50 µm deep, a dense palisade of basidia, paraphyses, acanthophyses, and cystidioid hyphae. Basidia subclavate, 24-30 x 5-6 µm bearing 4 spores; sterigmata erect, slender, to 6 µm long. Paraphyses subclavate, 10-16 x 3.5-4 µm. Cystidioid hyphae traversing the hymenial layer, scarcely projecting, apices rounded or acuminate, to 8 µm diameter, walls 1-5 µm thick, in the base of the hymenium many inflated to 10-16 µm with walls thickened to 4 µm, contents inconspicuous. Spores elliptical or suballantoid, apiculate, 7-9 x 2.5-4 µm, walls smooth, hyaline, 0.2 µm thick.

DISTRIBUTION: Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand.

HABITAT: Effused on bark or decorticated dead trunks and branches, often on upright power poles or worked timber.

Collections agree with the type in Kew herbarium, ex "Swan River, Western Australia, No. 158". The species may be identified by the pallid brown context with rich chestnut cortex, coarsely strigose hirsute surface and presence of acanthophyses and cystidioid hyphae in the hymenial layer. Collections vary, exhibiting three main growth forms: (1) large effused-reflexed or flabelliform plants often laterally connate, common on fallen trunks and branches; (2) small flabelliform or umbonate plants common on power poles, or upright stems of shrubs; and (3) resupinate forms common on worked timber such as handrails, boxing, and flooring, in which the fungus produces a destructive decay. In the first, acanthophyses are delicate, bearing spines which rarely exceed half a dozen in number and 0.5 µm in length; in the second, prominent, bearing numerous spines which may reach a length of 4 µm and exceed a dozen in number, in the third they may be delicate or well developed. Usually the surface is strigose-hirsute, chestnut, concentrically sulcate and zoned with several shades of brown hairs, the basal portion being less hirsute and often grey. Hairs may partly disappear, exposing zones of dark cortex, or be shed completely, when the surface appears polished and black. Colour of the hymenial surface also varies appreciably: when fresh it may be light pinkish-buff, plum, or tinted violet or heliotrope; old specimens usually weather to lead or ashy grey, and become deeply creviced, often more prominently around the point of attachment. Some plants are stratose, bearing from two to five layers with receding margins. Resupinate plants, common on worked timber, in appearance resemble resupinate specimens of S. fasciatum but differ in possessing acanthophyses.

TYPE LOCALITY: Swan River, Western Australia.