Glomeromycota Taxonomy
Recent taxonomy and systematics of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, with notes on rank, nomenclature and key references.
Dear scientists, because this site has been kept on a free, private base during the last years, and because of recent very large changes in the systematics and taxonomy of AM fungi (some are hard to understand), we cannot keep this page up to date any more and will shut it down soon (until end of 2024).
Note that the following data may be outdated from the formal point of view.
Why we do not use ‘Glomeromycotina’
We do not adopt the suggested systematic placing of AMF in the ‘Glomeromycotina’, because the phylum level may eventually be resurrected. In our opinion, merging many of the high-ranking ‘basal lineages’ of fungal taxa into one phylum is not consistent with the taxonomy of the best investigated fungal clade, the Dikarya (Ascomycota and Basidiomycota).
One could perhaps have erected a new superphylum, maybe as Zygomycota (a taxon that was entirely discarded), to host several ancestral fungal phyla. This would have kept the established name ‘Zygomycota’, and AMF would then have remained members of the zygomycetes, with few changes and as a nice compromise with classical taxon use.
Rules of nomenclature
Above family rank
Names above the rank of family are not governed by priority in the Botanical Code, so you are free to use whichever name you prefer.
Up to family rank
Up to and including family level, the Botanical Code is binding and has to be followed.
Taxonomic ranks in the Glomeromycota
Orders and families named on this site include Glomerales, Diversisporales, Gigasporaceae, Pacisporaceae, Diversisporaceae and Gerdemanniaceae. Genera include Glomus, Rhizophagus, Funneliformis, Claroideoglomus, Redeckera, Diversispora, Pacispora and Gerdemannia.
Corrections and discussion
Some questionable taxa that had been published were corrected. Problems are indicated in the table linked from the original page. There are also more recent taxa from the last decade; some are good, some are not.
Key references
Examples of name changes
| Former name | Current name |
|---|---|
| Glomus intraradices DAOM197198 | Rhizophagus irregularis DAOM197198 |
| Glomus versiforme BEG47 | Diversispora epigaea BEG47 |
| Glomus scintillans, G. dominikii, G. chimonobambusae | Pacispora (type of Pacisporaceae) |
| Gerdemannia / Gerdemanniaceae | Later synonyms of Pacispora / Pacisporaceae |
Our approach
We stick to the Botanical Code and to Index Fungorum as an expert system. We do not follow the taxa inflation by some authors, who make their own rules of what they accept or not and ignore several rules of the Botanical Code.