Hello Everyone,

I have found fruit bodies which resemble the genus Niesslia macroscopically, but with differing microscopy.

The tiny, spherical fruit bodies have short, thick walled, pointed brown hairs and rest on the surface of their host.

Microscopically, the asci are arranged in whorls, containing eight pale brownish green spores, typically with one large guttule in each. The spores are in a single row in the asci and measure 8.5 - 10 x 5 - 6 um. The asci do not react to Melzers, but the spores inside them 'lose' their guttules.

Although the host is well decayed wood of Salix, there is an effuse greyish white layer covering its surface - possibly a resupinate from the basidiomycota. The conidial state of Chaetosphaerella phaeostroma is also present, thinly distributed, but right across the sample.

I have attached photos of the fruit bodies, asci and spores, hairs and effuse greyish matter.

I wonder if anyone has any ideas about what this tiny, hairy, black, spherical ascomycete might be?

Thank You,
Peter.