Melaspileellaceae

Melaspileella is an ascomycete genus in the family Melaspileellaceae, placed in the order Asterinales (class Dothideomycetes). The family was established in 2018 to accommodate the single genus Melaspileella, which contains only M. proximella, a species originally described in 1861. Long misclassified as a lichen and moved through various genera, molecular studies confirmed it is actually a non-lichenised saprophyte living on tree bark. The fungus is characterised by minute black fruiting bodies and distinctive ascospores bearing slender appendages that are visible when wet but disappear upon drying. Found across temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere on both conifers and broad-leaved trees, it remains rarely encountered, likely due to its tiny size and inconspicuous appearance.