Abstract
Three species of Clitopilus, C. albidus sp. nov., C. subscyphoides and C. orientalis, are described from Kerala State, India, based on morphology and molecular phylogeny. Comprehensive descriptions, photographs, and comparisons with phenetically similar and phylogenetically related species are provided. The RNA polymerase II genes (rpb2) of the three species were sequenced and analyzed. In addition, the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer regions (ITS) and the nuclear ribosomal large subunit (nLSU) genes were sequenced and used in BLAST searches to find similar sequences. Phylogenetic analyses based on rpb2 sequences performed using both Maximum Likelihood (ML) and Bayesian Analysis (BA) methods supported the novelty of C. albidus and its placement within the genus Clitopilus. C. subscyphoides and C. orientalis are the first and second record respectively of these species from India.