A new species of Lepiota with epithelial pileal covering

A new species, Lepiota keralensis, was collected from Kerala, India and
was studied using morphological and molecular (ITS, LSU and rpb2 gene)
characters. The species is characterized by medium-sized basidiomata with
innate squarrose brown coloured squamules on a white background, hyaline,
dextrinoid, non-metachromatic, smooth-walled basidiospores, absence of
cheilocystidia and pleurocystidia, and globose to ellipsoid cells on
pileal covering. Morphological as well as phylogenetic analyses confirm
the placement of the new species in Lepiota sect. Echinatae. The
discovery of the new species adds to the existing data on tropical
lepiotas.