Breaking a 128-year silence: new records of Cyphella digitalis (Alb. & Schwein.) Fr. in Italy

Cyphella digitalis develops small, distinctly campanulate basidiomata exclusively on Abies alba. While its presence has been well documented north of the Alps, only a singular record has been reported from Italy almost 128 years ago with no further findings until now. In 2024, C. digitalis was recorded on several A. alba individuals in the relict population of Monte Nero (Emilian-Ligurian Apennines, SIC IT4010003) along with few specimens from the broader A. alba populations in Trento Province. Consistent with the hardly mistakable morphology, molecular barcode confirmed the basidiomata identity. Unfortunately, very few nucleotide sequences of this species have been deposited in repositories to date, making it impossible to reconstruct a robust intraspecific phylogeny. No differences have been pointed out between samples from the Apennines and the Alps based on either the ITS region or morphology, nor with regard to other European regions according to the literature. This study suggests that C. digitalis may have been overlooked in both Italian sides of the Alps as well as in the relict A. alba populations of the Apennines. Since C. digitalis is monophagous, these findings highlight the importance of conserving relict habitats including A. alba in the Apennines, especially from a fungal conservation perspective.