NAME Callimothallus
AGE    AGE span:  mya
K&J CLASSIFICATION (2000) Ascomycetes, Microthyriales.
FIGURE(S)
FIGURE REFERENCE
SPECIES, AUTHORITY Callimothallus Dilcher 1965, p. 13.
LOCATION
ORIG DESCRIPTION* ORIGINAL DIAGNOSIS: No free hyphae. Stroma round, radiate, astomate, no central dehiscence, individual cells may possess single pore. Spores undetermined.
COMMENTS* Callimothallus is similar to the astomate immature forms of Microthyriolum Spegazzini described by Stevens & Ryan (1939) as "No free mycelium, ascomata round, astomate, glabrous, stellate, dehiscent, spores 2-celled, hyaline, pseudoparaphyses few". Microthyriolum differs from the closely related and much more common genus Microthyrium by one character; it is astomate with stellate dehiscence. In the many fossil forms of Callimothallus which were carefully examined, forms ranging from 50-250 µm in diameter, many of which appear to be mature, no stellate dehiscence was found. In fact Callimothallus lacks any central dehiscence and is characterized by numerous pores; and, it is the only genus in the Microthyriaceae that is multiporate. The only report of such pores in modern fungal material was made by Stevens (1925) for Microthyriella (Micropeltaceae) for which he described "secondary ostioles". Similar pores have been described for mature forms of an alga, "Phycopeltis epiphyton" Millardet (1870). Kirchheimer (1942) described some epiphyllous fossil "thalli" from Oligocene brown coal beds in Germany which are very similar to C. pertusus. However, on the basis of the similarity of the porate condition and the general similarities of the developmental stages and adult thalli of the modern forms of Phycopeltis and the fossil material he found, Kirchheimer named the fossil material Phycopeltis microthyrioides [for details, see Dilcher 1965].
PUBLICATION REFERENCE Dilcher DL. 1965. Epiphyllous fungi from Eocene deposits in western Tennessee, U.S.A.; Palaeontographica, Abt. B, v. 116, p. 1-54.
K&J REMARKS Elsik (1978) pointed out that the porate condition in Callimothallus is required for at least a number of the cells to separate it from Phragmothyrites and that if the porate nature is well represented, even fragments of the fructification are recognizable.
TYPE TYPE: Callimothallus pertusus Dilcher 1965, p. 13, pl. 6, fig. 45 [lectotype, selected by Jansonius and Hills (1976), card no. 356].
ALL NAMES (Including synonyms) Pseudosphaerialites Venkatachala & Kar 1969. Siwalikiathyrites Saxena & Singh 1983. ; Callimothallus;
SERIAL NUMBER 150
PUBLIC COMMENTS
 *For source, see Publication Reference.