sp. nov., a Novel Species of Entomopathogenic Fungi Associated with Weevils Impairing Coffee, Sugar Cane and Sweet Potato Cultivation.

(1) Background: Insect pathogenic fungi of the genus are under study and in application as highly solicited, more eco-system friendly substitutes for chemical insecticides in many countries and in different agricultural contexts. In Cuba and Florida, strains have previously been isolated from economically important coffee and sugar cane pests. (2) Methods: Unambiguous species delineation within the species complex is methodologically challenging. Recently, a species-discriminating PCR approach has been developed based on ribosomal intergenic spacer (rIGS) sequences that covered the prominent four "PARB" species within the complex. This approach is combined here with further genetic markers and is extended to a further species. (3) Results: isolates from Cuba, found to be more naturally associated with the coffee berry borer, , were morphologically, microscopically and molecular taxonomically characterized. Multilocus sequence analysis based on 5TEF, MzIGS3 and rIGS markers delineated these weevil-associated strains from all previously established species. (4) Conclusions: The isolates under study represent a new fungal taxon proposed to be designated . The rIGS-based species-discriminating diagnostic PCR is a suitable tool for the identification of new species and can be productively combined to approaches using further genetic markers.