This month Mycological Research News reports how elevated carbon dioxide levels affect soil fungi, on cryptic species of macromycetes and species concepts, punching appressoria, and fungi in the Dead Sea. Amongst the topics covered in the 17 research papers included in this issue are ones presenting a new molecular taxonomy for Metarhizium, insights into the taxonomy of small-spored Alternaria species, sequencing and expression of an enolase gene in Cunninghamella, a novel extracellular protease from Beauveria bassiana, tests of different mathematical models on the effect on a lichen's growth by neighbouring thalli, how the taenia in Trichiales capillitium is formed, histological details of the incompatibility reaction between Plasmodiophora brassicae and Arabidopsis, and a key to the known Beltraniopsis species. The following new species and varieties are described: Beltraniopsis miconiae, Chrysosporium fluviale, Leptographium piceaperdum, and Metarhizium anisopilae vars acridum, lepidotum, and majus, and M. flavoviride vars novazealandicum and pemphigum.