ADDITIONAL SPECIMENS EXAMINED: NORTH ISLAND: AUCKLAND: Huia, on unknown host, Mar 1953, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16900; Huia, on unknown host, Jul 1953, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16906; Hunua Ranges, Cossey's Creek, on unknown host, 15 Mar 1958, J. M. Dingley, PDD 18413, anamorph on host, culture on PDA; One Tree Hill, on Populus sp., Oct 1955, S. D. Baker, PDD 16905; Orere Point, on Neopanax arboreum, 22 Jun 1958, J. M. Dingley, PDD 18414, anamorph on host; Purewa Bush, Orakei, D. W. on Sophora microphylla, Nov 1948, D. W. MacKenzie, PDD 16902; Rangitoto I., on dead wood, 3 Jun 1947, J. M. Dingley, PDD 5539, anamorph on host; Titirangi, on Brachyglottis repanda, Feb 1951, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16897; Titirangi, Titirangi Beach Reserve, on decorticated wood, 18 Sep 1980, G. J. Samuels, P. R. Johnston, & A. E. Esler, PDD 49679; Waikowhai, on Macropiper excelsum, Nov 1956, S. D. Brook, PDD 16895*; Waitakere Ranges, Fairy Falls Trail, trail off Mountain Road, on decorticated wood, 12 Aug 1981, G. J. Samuels, R. P. Korf, P. R. Johnston, J. W. Paden, & R. E. Beever, PDD 49529, culture on CMD; Waitakere Ranges, Piha, rotten wood, 17 Dec 1963, J. M. Dingley, PDD 23203; Waitakare Ranges, Piha Rd, Cowan Tr., on Freycinetia banksii, 4 Jun 1983, G. J. Samuels & A. Y. Rossman, PDD 46318; Waitakere Ranges, Upper Piha, 500 ft, on rotten wood, Aug 1948, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16901; Waitakere Ranges, Upper Piha Valley, on Hedycarya arborea, 9 Oct 1963, J. M. Dingley, PDD 21823; Waitakere Ranges, Kauri Knoll Track, dead wood, 20 Aug 1963, S. J. Hughes, PDD 21443; Waitakere Ranges, Huia, Parau Tr., on scales of Rhopalostylis sapida, 23 Oct 1980, G. J. Samuels & P. R. Johnston, PDD 49687, cultures on OA, CMD; Waitakere Ranges, Mountain Rd, Walkers Bush, on decort. wood, 4 Aug 1982, G. J. Samuels, P. R. Johnston, & E. H. C. McKenzie, PDD 44418; Waitakere Ranges, Shaw Rd, on unknown host, Jul 1955, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16907; Waitakere Ranges, Cascades, on wood, 12 Aug 1981, G. J. Samuels, P. R. Johnston, & J. W. Paden, PDD 41985, anamorph on host. BAY OF PLENTY: Rotorua, Rotoehu, on unknown host, 22 May 1964, J. M. Dingley, PDD 23308; Rotorua, Te Whaiti, on Beilschmiedia tawa, Jun 1950, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16896. COROMANDEL PENINSULA: Little Barrier I., onBeilschmiedia tawa, Jun 1956, F. J. Newhook, PDD 16903, anamorph on host; Whitianga Rd, on Schefflera digitata, Aug 1954, J. M. Dingley, PDD 16904. SOUTH ISLAND: MID CANTERBURY: Upper Waimakiriri River, on dead wood, 1882, T. Kirk, PDD 457; upper Waimakariri, J. Kirk 72, K 79241*; Craigieburn Range, Cave Stream, on rotting wood of Nothofagus solandri, E. Horak, 31 Mar 1983, ZT*. KAIKOURA: Hapuku, on Melicytus ramiflorus, 29 Mar 1959, J. M. Dingley, PDD 23568. SOUTH CANTERBURY: Waitaki, S. Berggren 250, UPS*.

Subiculum evanescent, restricted, approx. to 1 mm in extension, as white, cream patches in early stages, later light brown, felty, bearing conidiophores, subsequently reduced while stromata progressively emerge, until absent in old material. Stromata (400)687 ± 119.5(1050) µm high, (550)804 ± 131(1250) µm wide (n = 134), conical to columnar with bluntly rounded top, side walls often with concentric rings, wavy (Fig. 11E,H), dark brown, black around the ostioles, completely black when old, solitary or crowded, touching each other, sometimes 2-3 fused together, when young completely covered by the subiculum, during development gradually exposed. Ostioles finely papillate to pointed or not pronounced. Ectostroma 50-75 µm thick, black. Entostroma light brown, confined to the base. Perithecia detached and collapsed in mature material. Ascus apical rings (1.9)2.7 ± 0.5(3.8) µm high, upper width 3.3- 4.8 µm, lower width 2-2.8 µm (n = 63), J+, pale blue. Ascospores (13.4)17.3 ± 1.3(21.6) µm long, (6.7)8.9 ± 0.7(11.5) µm wide (n = 710), inequilaterally ellipsoidal, dark brown, with straight germ slit, extending almost over the whole spore length. Conidia 3-4 x 2.5-3 µm.
Cultures on OA after 13 days at 20°C under diffused daylight 0.7-1 cm diam., white to pale pink, sterile, after 30 days 2.5-3 cm, flat, densely cottony, white when sterile, grey from conidial production, reverse white. Conidiophores 100-200 µm long, 3- 4 µm wide, forming a continuous layer over the colony surface, mononematous, macronematous, loosely and irregularly branched, smooth, pale olivaceous. Conidiogenous cells 19-60 x 2.5-3 µm when terminal (n = 21), terminal and intercalary alsobearing terminal and intercalary conidiogenous loci, geniculate with a circular refractive frill at each point of conidial dehiscence. Conidia 3-4(5) x (2)2.5- 3 µm (n = 44), ovoid to subglobose with a flat, c. 1 µm wide basal frill, refractive. On CMD after 29 days at 20°C under 12 h dark and 12 h UV and fluorescent light 1.5 cm in diam., pale orange, transparent, aerial hyphae short. Conidiophores 80- 160 µm high, 1.5-2 µm wide, freely branched, bearing a head of conidia at the tip of each branch, subhyaline to pale tan. Conidiogenous cells 30-55 x 2-3 µm (n = 9), terminal, sometimes intercalary, geniculate with a circular refractive frill at each point of conidial dehiscence. Conidia 3-4(5) x 2-3 µm (n = 44), subglobose to ovate with protuberant, 1 µm wide flat basal abscission scar bearing a minute frill, smooth, subhyaline. On PDA restricted, white, felty, forming concentric rings, with large grey areas bearing conidiophores.
ANAMORPH: Geniculosporium.

HOSTS: Beilschmiedia tawa, Brachyglottis repanda, Freycinetia baueriana subsp. banksii, Hedycarya arborea, Macropiper excelsum, Melicytus ramiflorus, Neopanax arboreum, Nothofagus solandri, Populus sp., Rhopalostylis sapida, Schefflera digitata, Sophora microphylla.
MATRIX: Corticated or decorticated, heavily decomposed wood.

Subiculum primo album ad cremeum, dein pallide brunneum aetate provecta, lanosum, conidiophora ferens. Stromata (400)687 ± 119.5(1050) µm alta, (550)804 ± 131(1250) µm lata, conica ad columnaria apice obtuse rotundato, parietibus lateralibus undulatis, concentricos annulos ferentibus, atrobrunnea, nigra ostiola circa, omnino nigra aetate provecta, singula vel conferta, interdum 2-3 connata, omnino subiculo dum juvena tectis, dein paulatim exposita. Ostiola laeviter papillata ad acuta sive indistincta. Annulus apicalis asci (1.9)2.7 ± 0.5(3.8) µm altus, parte superiore 3.3-4.8 µm et inferiore 2- 2.8 µm latus, iodo pallide coerulescenti. Ascosporae (13.4)17.3 ± 1.3(21.6) µm longae, (6.7)8.9 ± 0.7(11.5) µm latae, asymmetrice ellipsoideae, atrobrunneae, fissura germinativa recta, ascosporam totam recurrenti praeditae. Status anamorphosisGeniculosporium.

ETYMOLOGY: communis (common), referring to the frequent occurrence of this species.
NOTES: Rosellinia communis is characterised by itsconical to columnar, black stromata covered by a whitish cream subiculum when young. The side walls regularly show concentric rings, thus giving their surface a wavy appearance. Rosellinia communis can be distinguished easily from R. johnstonii and R. mammoidea by its larger, differently shaped stromata and ascospore size. Many specimens of R. communis were assigned to R. mammoidea, as the spore size erroneously published for the latter by Cooke (1879) corresponds to that of R. communis ascospores. Cooke (1879) gave 16-18 x 8 µm for the Travers collection (the type of R. mammoidea), whereas the spores of this specimen actually measure 11-14 x 7-8 µm (see R. mammoidea below).
The closest species is R. picta (Berk.) Cooke described from Sri Lanka. The type material has regular, conical to semiglobose stromata lacking wavy side walls and ascospores with pinched ends. The stroma and ascospore size, however, do not differ among the two species as revealed by analysis of variance and discriminant analysis, respectively (results not shown).
The type material of R. griseo-cincta Starbäck, R. indica Thind, and R. rickii Bres. show roughly the same shape for stromata and ascospores; the stromata, however, are larger and lack the wavy surface and the ascospores are smaller (L. E. Petrinu unpubl. data). Rosellinia communis differs from R. subiculata by stroma shape, size, and subiculum colour as well as much larger ascospores (Petrini 1993).

HOLOTYPUS (hic designatus): New Zealand, North Island, Northland: Hokianga County, on decorticated wood, 13 May 1983, G. J. Samuels, T. Matsushima, & R. H. Petersen, PDD 45775, anamorph on host, culture on OA examined.