NAME Ascodesmisites malayensis
AGE Eocene.   AGE span: 55.8...33.9 mya
K&J CLASSIFICATION (2000) Ascomycetes, Pezizales.
FIGURE(S)
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Pl.34fig.7.jpg
FIGURE REFERENCE Trivedi BS, Chaturvedi SK, Verma CL. 1973. A new fossil fungus Ascodesmisites malayensis gen. et. sp. nov. from Tertiary coals of Malaya; Geophytology, v. 3, p.126-129.
SPECIES, AUTHORITY A. malayensis Trivedi, Chaturvedi & Verma 1973, p. 129, pl. 1, figs. 1-5.
LOCATION Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
ORIG DESCRIPTION* [combined description] Profusely branched septate hyphae, conidia irregularly repeatedly and dichotomously lobed; multilocular, oval 60-85 µm in diameter, conidiophore very short. Mycelium dioecious, fruiting bodies minute, dark colored, without exciple and paraphysis.
COMMENTS* The fossil specimen shows a close affinity with the family Pezizaceae; however, it differs by the absence of exciple. Paraphyses are missing in the fossil fungus and it is not possible to ascertain the nature of the fossilized hypothecium. Minute fruiting bodies and various sexual stages (text-figs. 1-3) somewhat resemble those of Ascodesmis Van Tieghem 1876. In text-fig. 5, a stalked female gametangium (ascogonium) is ready to throw the trichogyne which ultimately coils round the male cell which is formed on the opposite cell of the neighbouring hypha (text-fig. 2). After the fusion of male and female cells, the ascogonium swells and gets ready for the parenchymic activity (text-fig. 3), ultimately a minute fruiting body without exciple is developed (pl. 1, fig. 5). The sexual stages, though closely related to Ascodesmis, differ in one most important character, viz. the absence of paraphysis. In fossil specimen, the male and female sex organs are found growing on two different hyphae. It is, therefore, likely that the fungus may have been dioecious.
PUBLICATION REFERENCE Trivedi BS, Chaturvedi SK, Verma CL. 1973. A new fossil fungus Ascodesmisites malayensis gen. et. sp. nov. from Tertiary coals of Malaya; Geophytology, v. 3, p.126-129.
K&J REMARKS Trivedi & Chaturvedi (1961) reported two new genera of fungi from coal beds, which consisted of asexual and sexual stages. They considered these stages different from each other, and suggested a relationship of the asexual phase with the living genus Desmidiospora, whereas the sexual stages were affiliated to the ascomycetous fungus Ascodesmis. In 1973, Trivedi, Chaturvedi & Verma established an organic link between these two phases and proposed the ascomycetous fossil fungus Ascodesmisites malayensis gen. et sp. nov., with a life cycle comprising both asexual and sexual generations.

Trivedi & Chaturvedi (1961) did not formally name these stages as two new genera, nor were they described formally before the publication of Ascodesmisites malayensis Trivedi, Chaturvedi & Verma 1973.
TYPE
ALL NAMES (Including synonyms) Ascodesmisites malayensis
SERIAL NUMBER 56
PUBLIC COMMENTS
 *For source, see Publication Reference.