Abstract:

Aims: Compilations of biodiversity catalogs are of great significance for biodiversity research, resource protection, and social and economic development. However, due to rapid research progress, a large number of new species and distribution records are reported every year, which requires accurate methods to summarize the discoveries of new taxa, as well as update species checklists frequently.

Method: Taxonomic data for newly published fungal names were retrieved and analyzed from the Fungal Names nomenclatural repository.

Results: In 2023, 2,050 scholars published 4,372 new fungal names throughout the world, including 7 classes, 17 orders, 56 families and subfamilies, 316 genera and subgenera, 2,997 species and intraspecific taxa, 831 combinations, 33 replacement names and 115 other names. These new names belonged to 3 kingdoms, 13 phyla, 47 classes, 170 orders, 441 families and 1,342 genera, among which micro-ascomycetes received the most attention. These newly published 2,975 fungal species were discovered from 102 countries and regions throughout the world, with eastern and southern Asia as the most noticeable spot for novel species discovery. In particular, China remained the most imminent country for annual species discoveries (1,249 species) that accounts for 41.98% of the world’s total new species. Additionally, Chinese scholars led the world in research output on fungal taxonomy in 2023, where 548 Chinese scholars participated in the publications of 2,160 new fungal names to contribute to nearly half of the world’s total new names.

Key words: taxonomy of fungi, author of new name, new taxa, locality of new species, China