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Scientists Uncover D. Rex: Gigantic New 'King' Fungus From China Traces Its Roots to 65 Million Years : ScienceAlert (opens in a new tab)

Scientists Uncover D. Rex: Gigantic New 'King' Fungus From China Traces Its Roots to 65 Million Years · 2026-10-15

Short answerEvidenceSource

Short answer

Mostly not supported

Mostly not supported.

One claim goes further than the study. 2 other points were not covered by the paper.

  • 1 supported
  • 1 overstated
  • 2 not covered

Checked against the study summary. The full text wasn't available, so some details couldn't be settled either way.

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1

The story

Scientists Uncover D. Rex: Gigantic New 'King' Fungus From China Traces Its Roots to 65 Million Years : ScienceAlert

Scientists Uncover D. Rex: Gigantic New 'King' Fungus From China Traces Its Roots to 65 Million Years · 2026-10-15

The story’s checkable claims.

Read the original story (opens in a new tab)
2

NewsLink checks it

Mostly not supported

One claim overstates the study. One of four checks out. Two claims the study doesn't address.

  • 1 supported
  • 1 overstated
  • 2 not covered
Open claim evidence
3
Then inspect each claim

Evidence layer

Claim by claim

Each claim gets a verdict. Expand it to see the evidence directly below.

4 claims in this story

Showing all 4 claimsChoose a verdict to focus the list.

Claim 1 of 4OverstatedThe researchers found that the Dianjunaceae family split from its closest known relatives about 65 million years ago, roughly 1 million years after the Chicxulub asteroid impact.View evidenceHide evidence

As statedabout 65 million years ago

Why this verdict

The profile supports an estimated early Paleocene origin of Dianjunaceae at about 65 Ma and places it as sister to Graphostromataceae. But the story claim is coded as causal and links the timing to Chicxulub aftermath; the abstract-profile evidence only notes temporal coincidence with the post–K-Pg period and does not provide analyses testing a causal relationship between the impact/extinction aftermath and the lineage split. The lead framing therefore outruns the evidence even though the date itself is supported.

1

Study evidence

Multilocus and phylogenomic analyses place Dianjunaceae as a distinct sister clade to Graphostromataceae within Xylariales.

“multilocus phylogeny [internal transcribed spacer (ITS), large subunit ribosomal DNA (LSU), RNA polymerase II subunit 2 (RPB2), and beta-tubulin (TUB2)], and phylogenomic analyses”
2

Study evidence

Divergence-time estimation places the origin of Dianjunaceae in the early Paleocene, approximately 65 million years ago.

“Divergence time estimation dates the origin of this family to the early Paleocene (~65 million years ago)”
Claim 2 of 4Not coveredMycologist Indunil Senanayake and colleagues say the new species was described in a paper published in Frontiers in Fungal Biology, and that D. rex is the only known member of its family, Dianjunaceae.View evidenceHide evidence

Why this verdict

The profile supports that the paper formally proposes Dianjunus rex as a new genus/species and Dianjunaceae as a new family, with D. rex as the type. However, at abstract-profile depth it does not verify the named author, journal-publication details, or explicitly state that D. rex is the only known member of Dianjunaceae, although that may be consistent with proposing a new monotypic family.

1

Study evidence

A new genus and species, Dianjunus rex gen. et sp. nov., and a new family, Dianjunaceae fam. nov., are proposed based on integrative taxonomic evidence from specimens collected in Yunnan Province, China.

“During mycological surveys in Yunnan Province, China, specimens of a fungus producing massive, upright stromata up to 50 cm high and individually 2.2 kg in weight were sampled.”
Claim 3 of 4Not coveredThe article says the post-impact environmental changes may have created new ecological opportunities for wood-associated decomposing fungi, and notes that previous fossils from North Dakota, Colorado, and New Zealand have been interpreted as evidence of a fungal boom after the mass extinction.View evidenceHide evidence

Why this verdict

The profile verifies only a broad abstract-level statement that the divergence date coincides with post–K-Pg ecological reorganization. It does not include the specific proposed mechanism involving opportunities for wood-associated decomposing fungi or the cited fossil evidence from North Dakota, Colorado, and New Zealand. Because these details may be in the full paper but are absent from the abstract-level profile, they are not verifiable at this depth.

1

Study evidence

Divergence-time estimation places the origin of Dianjunaceae in the early Paleocene, approximately 65 million years ago.

“Divergence time estimation dates the origin of this family to the early Paleocene (~65 million years ago)”
Claim 4 of 4SupportedScientists have identified a new fungus from Yunnan Province in China named Dianjunus rex, or D. rex, with gigantic club-like fruiting bodies that can grow up to 50 centimeters tall.View evidenceHide evidence

As statedup to 50 centimeters tall

Why this verdict

The abstract-level profile supports the core claim: specimens from Yunnan Province are described as the new fungus Dianjunus rex gen. et sp. nov., with massive upright stromata reaching up to 50 cm high. The profile says 'upright stromata' rather than specifically 'club-like' fruiting bodies, but the size, novelty, name, and location are supported.

1

Study evidence

A new genus and species, Dianjunus rex gen. et sp. nov., and a new family, Dianjunaceae fam. nov., are proposed based on integrative taxonomic evidence from specimens collected in Yunnan Province, China.

“During mycological surveys in Yunnan Province, China, specimens of a fungus producing massive, upright stromata up to 50 cm high and individually 2.2 kg in weight were sampled.”
2

Study evidence

Individual upright stromata of Dianjunus rex were reported to reach up to 50 cm in height and 2.2 kg in weight.50 cm; 2.2 kg

“massive, upright stromata up to 50 cm high and individually 2.2 kg in weight”
Then look for missing context

Context layer

What the story left out

Important study details the story did not include.

  • Limitations of the divergence dating: the abstract profile lacks confidence intervals, calibration sources, clock model, priors, software, and sensitivity details.

    The story notes that the asteroid-linked fungal boom is proposed rather than settled, but it does not communicate the methodological uncertainty around the molecular-clock date itself. This is interpretation-relevant because the asteroid/K–Pg framing depends heavily on the precision and robustness of the 65 Ma estimate.

    From molecular clock / divergence time estimation

  • Limitations of phylogenetic evidence: support metrics, taxon sampling breadth, alignment/model choices, and phylogenomic dataset details are not provided at abstract depth.

    The story reports DNA comparisons but does not mention that the abstract-level profile lacks numerical support values and sampling/model details needed to independently assess phylogenetic robustness.

    From multilocus phylogeny and phylogenomics

  • Geographic and specimen-sampling limitations: abstract profile lacks sample size, voucher details, and geographic extent beyond Yunnan Province.

    The story identifies Yunnan as the source but does not discuss the limited abstract-level information about sampling breadth or voucher/specimen details.

    From integrative taxonomic approach

6 things the story did carry across
  • Formal description of Dianjunus rex gen. et sp. nov. from Yunnan Province and proposal of the new family Dianjunaceae.
  • Extreme morphology: massive upright stromata up to 50 cm high and about 2.2 kg, described by the authors as the largest documented fructifications within Ascomycota.
  • Integrative taxonomy using morphology, multilocus phylogeny, and phylogenomic analyses.
  • Phylogenetic placement of Dianjunaceae as a distinct sister clade to Graphostromataceae within Xylariales.
  • Divergence-time estimate placing the origin of Dianjunaceae in the early Paleocene, approximately 65 million years ago.
  • Paper-level interpretation that the divergence timing coincides with post–K–Pg ecological reorganization, without abstract-level evidence for a tested causal mechanism.
Then read the study layer

Study layer

Study at a glance

Scan the study first. Expand only the parts you want to inspect.

Pieces of work

4

Evidence read

study summary

Lead result

other

1Lead resultotherDescribe and formally propose a new fungal genus/species (Dianjunus rex) and a new family (Dianjunaceae) based on integrative taxonomy from Yunnan field collections.integrative taxonomic approachExpand

In plain English

Authors describe and formally propose Dianjunus rex gen. et sp. nov. and erect a new family, Dianjunaceae (Xylariales), based on specimen-based integrative taxonomy of material collected in Yunnan Province, China. Evidence includes detailed macromorphology (massive upright stromata up to 50 cm tall and ~2.2 kg), micromorphology including a nodulisporium-like anamorph with periconiella-like branching, multilocus phylogeny (ITS, LSU, RPB2, TUB2), and phylogenomic analyses. Phylogenetic analyses place Dianjunaceae as a distinct sister clade to Graphostromataceae, and divergence dating is reported at the early Paleocene (~65 Ma). The discovery is presented as expanding the known morphological and phylogenetic diversity of Xylariales.

Key findings

  • A new genus and species, Dianjunus rex gen. et sp. nov., and a new family, Dianjunaceae fam. nov., are proposed based on integrative taxonomic evidence from specimens collected in Yunnan Province, China.
  • Morphology: the fungus produces exceptionally large upright stromata (up to 50 cm tall and ~2.2 kg), representing the largest fructifications reported within Ascomycota in the authors' account.
“During mycological surveys in Yunnan Province, China, specimens of a fungus producing massive, upright stromata up to 50 cm high and individually 2.2 kg in weight were sampled.”
What this piece can’t prove

2 further details could not be confirmed from the summary.

2in silicoEstablish the phylogenetic placement of Dianjunaceae within Xylariales (sister to Graphostromataceae) using multilocus phylogeny and phylogenomics.multilocus phylogeny and phylogenomicsExpand

In plain English

The authors used multilocus sequence data (ITS, LSU, RPB2, TUB2) together with phylogenomic (genome-scale) analyses to infer the placement of the newly described Dianjunaceae within Xylariales; the reported result is that Dianjunaceae forms a distinct, well-supported sister clade to Graphostromataceae.

Key findings

  • Multilocus and phylogenomic analyses place Dianjunaceae as a distinct sister clade to Graphostromataceae within Xylariales.
“multilocus phylogeny [internal transcribed spacer (ITS), large subunit ribosomal DNA (LSU), RNA polymerase II subunit 2 (RPB2), and beta-tubulin (TUB2)], and phylogenomic analyses”
What this piece can’t prove
  • The abstract lists the markers and states phylogenomic analyses were done but lacks methodological detail (software, models, parameters) needed to fully evaluate the phylogenetic inference.

2 further details could not be confirmed from the summary.

3in silicoEstimate divergence time for Dianjunaceae (early Paleocene ~65 Ma) and relate it to post–K-Pg ecological reorganization.molecular clock / divergence time estimationExpand

In plain English

The authors performed divergence-time estimation and report that the origin of the newly proposed family Dianjunaceae is dated to the early Paleocene (~65 million years ago), a timing the abstract notes as coinciding with the aftermath of the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) extinction and associated ecological reorganization. The abstract does not provide details on clock model, calibrations, uncertainty intervals, or software/settings used for the dating analysis.

Key findings

  • Divergence-time estimation places the origin of Dianjunaceae in the early Paleocene, approximately 65 million years ago.
“Divergence time estimation dates the origin of this family to the early Paleocene (~65 million years ago)”
What this piece can’t prove
  • Temporal association with the K–Pg extinction is stated but the abstract does not detail any analyses that would support a mechanistic or causal relationship.

2 further details could not be confirmed from the summary.

4otherDocument and contextualize extreme stromatal morphology (largest reported Ascomycota fructifications) and provide a comprehensive morphological/anamorph description.field and comparative morphometricsExpand

In plain English

The paper reports exceptionally large upright stromata produced by Dianjunus rex, measured on collected specimens as reaching up to 50 cm in height and ~2.2 kg in individual mass, and states that these stromata represent the largest fructifications documented within the Ascomycota. The claim is based on specimen measurements reported alongside the taxonomic description and a comparative claim against the literature.

Key findings

  • Individual upright stromata of Dianjunus rex were reported to reach up to 50 cm in height and 2.2 kg in weight.50 cm; 2.2 kg
  • The authors state that the stromata of D. rex represent the largest fructifications documented within the Ascomycota.
“massive, upright stromata up to 50 cm high and individually 2.2 kg in weight”
What this piece can’t prove
  • Abstract does not report the number of specimens measured or the specific measurement protocols (e.g., how height and mass were measured).

2 further details could not be confirmed from the summary.

Finally, the search trail

Method layer

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NewsLink checks the story. Tessa is where you inspect the paper, authors, evidence, and research context.

Papers considered

The selected paper, plus nearby candidates.

PubMed, Crossref, Europe PMC · 15 candidate papers

Candidate

Peer Review #2 of "Phylogeny, time divergence, and historical biogeography of the South American Liolaemus alticolor-bibronii group (Iguania: Liolaemidae) (v0.1)"

2018 · Crossref

Source (opens in a new tab)

And 9 more candidates considered.