As symbiotic mycorrhizal associates, species within the genus Laccaria play pivotal roles in forest ecosystems, specifically forming ectomycorrhizal relationships with the root systems of various plants. Some Laccaria species are recognized for their edibility, holding potential as a sustainable food source in the context of future food security and dietary diversification. In this study, the species diversity of Laccaria in Yunnan was investigated, and four novel species were identified. Their taxonomical positions and phylogenetic affinities were confirmed through phylogenetic analysis based on ITS, nrLSU, tef1-α, and rpb2 sequence data. Macro- and micro-morphological characteristics of the new species are also given here. Laccaria brownii sp. nov. has a dark to slightly desaturated orange pileus, stipe context broadly fistulose and soft orange, and relatively smaller cheilocystidia and pleurocystidia. Laccaria orangei sp. nov. has a hemispherical to paraboloid pileus, abundant narrowly clavate, flexuose, and branched cheilocystidia. Laccaria ruber sp. nov. pileus is red on the margin, clearly striate on the pileus surface, basidia clavate, mostly four-spored, rarely two-spored. Laccaria stipalba sp. nov. stipe surface is white, long sterigmata (4–13 μm × 2–3 μm), pleurocystidia narrowly clavate to subclavate, flexuose or mucronate, rarely branch. The descriptions, illustrations, and phylogenetic analysis results of the new taxa are provided. In addition, the new taxa are compared with closely related taxa.

Two novel species of Lyophyllum are proposed based on morphological and phylogenetic investigations. Lyophyllum bulborhizum sp. nov. has abundant black scales on the surface, is a dry, dark grey at the center, grey at the margin, has a clear bulbous stipe base, and has a narrowly cylindrical or narrowly clavate pleurocystidia and cheilocystidia. Lyophyllum nigrum sp. nov. is tufted and has a dark grey pileus and subclavate, a greyish green-to-olive stipe, and a narrowly cylindrical or narrowly clavate pleurocystidia and cheilocystidia. In addition, L. rhombisporum is described with morphology and phylogeny and compared with the type species. Molecular analyses employing internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences strongly support the two new species to be unique in the genus Lyophyllum. Full descriptions, colour photos, illustrations, and phylogenetic analyses results of the two new taxa and the known taxon are presented in this study.

Two new species, Lyophyllum yiqunyang and L. heimogu, that belong to the section Difformia of the genus Lyophyllum, are described based on collections from Tibetan areas, China. The two species are delicious edible low-temperature mushrooms and are widely collected and eaten by local people. Lyophyllum yiqunyang sp. nov. is saprotrophic and has medium-sized basidiomata, olive-grey pileus, cheilocystidia, absent pleurocystidia, globose to subglobose basidiospores (6.12–6.31 × 6.02–6.23 μm) and clamp connections at the pileus context, hymenophoral trama and stipe. Lyophyllum heimogu sp. nov. is saprotrophic and has a dark grey to olive pileus, medium-sized basidiomata and globose to subglobose basidiospores (5.31–5.63 × 5.22–5.41 μm). In the phylogenetic analyses, our two new species formed distinct clades that are well supported by posterior probabilities and bootstrap proportions. Detailed descriptions, colour photos, illustrations and a phylogenetic tree to show the positions of the two new species are presented.

Sanguinoderma (Ganodermataceae) is recognized as a valuable medicinal resource in Taiwan, China. Additionally, it serves as a traditional folk medicine for treating neurotic epilepsy in Malaysia. This study involved the collection of six specimens of Sanguinoderma from Yunnan Province, China. Employing multigene phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences, including internal transcribed spacer (ITS), nuclear large subunit (LSU), RNA polymerase II second largest subunit (rpb2), translation elongation factor 1-alpha (tef1-α), mitochondrial small subunit (mtSSU), nuclear small subunit (nSSU) and morphological examinations, three new species, viz. Sanguinoderma concentricum, S. dehongense and S. ovisporum, are introduced. Sanguinoderma concentricum is characterized by a central stipe basidiomata, an orbicular to suborbicular pileus, a grayish-yellow surface with alternating concentric zones and wavy margin-like petals and regular pileipellis cells (4–8 × 17–28 μm). Sanguinoderma dehongense is characterized by a long stipe and flabelliform basidiomata, a dark-grayish yellow-to-dark-yellow pileus surface, irregular pileipellis cells and wavy margin and ellipsoid basidia (8–11 × 9–13 μm). Sanguinoderma ovisporum is characterized by a reniform basidiomata, a heterogeneous context and ovoid basidiospores (7.5–8.6 × 5.5–7.2 µm). A detailed description and illustrations of these new species are provided, as well as a morphological comparison with similar taxa.

Lyophyllum species holds significant economic and medicinal value. During an investigation of macrofungi in southwestern China, seven Lyophyllum specimens were collected. Detailed morphological examinations, together with multi-locus phylogenetic analyses based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS), nuclear ribosomal large subunit (nrLSU), RNA polymerase II second largest subunit ( rpb 2), and translation elongation factor 1-alpha ( tef 1-α) sequence data, revealed two previously undescribed species, Lyophyllum hemigaleatum and L. pseudorrhizum . Lyophyllum hemigaleatum has an orange and hemispherical pileus (1.4–1.8 cm), inflexed of margin; pileus context white, fleshy, and turns slightly desaturated orange when injured; basidiospores broadly to subbroadly (av. 7.36 ± 0.65 × 5.10 ± 0.44 μm); in multi-locus phylogenetic analysis, Lyophyllum hemigaleatum is closely related to L. semitale , L. semitale was originally described from Sweden, has a larger pileus (2.5 cm vs. 1.4–1.8 cm) and a white stipe; its most distinctive feature is a distinctly rooted stipe and saprophytic on wood, these pieces of evidence support our tentative identification of L. hemigaleatum as new species. Lyophyllum pseudorrhizum is characterised by a fleshy pileus (1.2–2.8 cm wide) that is greyish orange, hemispherical when young, becoming plano-convex or convex with age and with an inflexed margin; pileus context is white and unchanged in colour when injured; stipe base aggregates to form pseudorrhiza; basidiospores subglobose to broadly ellipsoid (av. 5.2 ± 0.42 × 4.8 ± 0.34 μm). Descriptions, illustrations and phylogenetic analysis results of the new species are provided. In addition, the new species are compared with closely related taxa.

In this study, using the phylogenetic framework for Conocybe from Tóth et al. and Song, along with a combined dataset of internal transcribed spacer (ITS), nuclear large subunit ribosomal DNA (28S), and translation elongation factor 1-alpha ( tef 1-α) sequences, we reconstructed a Bayesian inference Maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree for sect. Conocybe . The phylogenetic trees showed that sect. Conocybe is divided into two monophyletic clades: sect. Conocybe Clade 1 is consistent with sect. Conocybe in both morphology and phylogenetic positions, whereas some species in sect. Conocybe Clade 2 have morphological characteristics that conform to sect. Mixtae . Moreover, we also discovered two new species of Conocybe in southwestern China: C. maculatostriata , which has a pileus with maculate stripes, and C. lidaensis , whose caulocystidia and pileocystidia are of a mixed type. In addition, the study provides an identification key for sect. Conocybe Clade 1 and 2, accompanied by morphological descriptions and line drawings of C. mesospora OTU 21 and the new species.