Fungi are among the most diverse and ecologically important kingdoms in life. However, the distributional ranges of fungi remain largely unknown as do the ecological mechanisms that shape their distributions^1,2. To provide an integrated view of the spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi, we implemented a globally distributed standardized aerial sampling of fungal spores³. The vast majority of operational taxonomic units were detected within only one climatic zone, and the spatiotemporal patterns of species richness and community composition were mostly explained by annual mean air temperature. Tropical regions hosted the highest fungal diversity except for lichenized, ericoid mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal fungi, which reached their peak diversity in temperate regions. The sensitivity in climatic responses was associated with phylogenetic relatedness, suggesting that large-scale distributions of some fungal groups are partially constrained by their ancestral niche. There was a strong phylogenetic signal in seasonal sensitivity, suggesting that some groups of fungi have retained their ancestral trait of sporulating for only a short period. Overall, our results show that the hyperdiverse kingdom of fungi follows globally highly predictable spatial and temporal dynamics, with seasonality in both species richness and community composition increasing with latitude. Our study reports patterns resembling those described for other major groups of organisms, thus making a major contribution to the long-standing debate on whether organisms with a microbial lifestyle follow the global biodiversity paradigms known for macroorganisms^4,5.

Novel methods for sampling and characterizing biodiversity hold great promise for re-evaluating patterns of life across the planet. The sampling of airborne spores with a cyclone sampler, and the sequencing of their DNA, have been suggested as an efficient and well-calibrated tool for surveying fungal diversity across various environments. Here we present data originating from the Global Spore Sampling Project, comprising 2,768 samples collected during two years at 47 outdoor locations across the world. Each sample represents fungal DNA extracted from 24 m³ of air. We applied a conservative bioinformatics pipeline that filtered out sequences that did not show strong evidence of representing a fungal species. The pipeline yielded 27,954 species-level operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Each OTU is accompanied by a probabilistic taxonomic classification, validated through comparison with expert evaluations. To examine the potential of the data for ecological analyses, we partitioned the variation in species distributions into spatial and seasonal components, showing a strong effect of the annual mean temperature on community composition.

Opinion 130 deals with a Request for an Opinion asking the Judicial Commission to clarify whether the genus name Rhodococcus Zopf 1891 (Approved Lists 1980) is illegitimate. The Request is approved and an answer is given. The name Rhodococcus Zopf 1891 (Approved Lists 1980) is illegitimate because it is a later homonym of the validly published cyanobacterial name Rhodococcus Hansgirg 1884. The Judicial Commission also clarifies that it has the means to resolve such cases by conserving a name over an earlier homonym. It is concluded that the name Rhodococcus Zopf 1891 (Approved Lists 1980) is significantly more important than the name Rhodococcus Hansgirg 1884 and therefore the former is conserved over the latter. This makes the name Rhodococcus Zopf 1891 (Approved Lists 1980) legitimate.

The third part of the review of phenotype diversity of cyanobacterial assemblages from alkaline marshes in northern Belize includes species from heterocytous cyanobacterial families. The study was performed as a part of a long-term investigation of anthropogenic influences on marshes of this tropical country. The previous parts (coccoid and simple filamentous genera) were published in 2007 and 2009. As in these parts, the main study of natural populations was primarily based on the morphology of natural samples, and in four cases, when cultivation was successful, the results were supported by the 16S rRNA gene sequence method. A total of 21 recognizable morphospecies with distinct ecology and morphology were identified in samples collected between 2000 and 2011. From this set of taxa, several species correspond to cyanobacteria described by previous authors, with two nomenclatural combinations, six distinct species were described as new taxa from known genera, and in one case, the definition of a unique genus Dictyophoron was necessary, supported by gene sequencing. All new taxa were described with respect to their different and unique morphological and ecological separation and specific life cycles recognizable in natural populations, using the main principles of International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants. According to the floristic analysis, the composition of cyanobacterial microflora of marshes was found to be distinctive for the Caribbean as compared to similar localities of this region.