ABSTRACTUsing partial small subunit ribosomal gene sequences we show that yeast-like genera that produce galeate (hat-shaped) ascospores and similar-spored members of the Ophiostomatales do not form a monophyletic group. Based on distance and parsimony methodsCephaloascus fragransandEndomyces decipiensfailed to form a monophyletic grouping with species ofCeratocystis sensu strictoandOphiostoma.Instead these yeast species clustered withSaccharomyces cerevisiae, Kluyveromyces lactis, andTorulaspora delbrueckiiin>9% of both the distance and parsimony majority-rule consensus trees generated using the statistical method of bootstrapping. Therefore galeate ascospores appear to be an example of convergent evolution in fungi and by itself this trait should not be considered as an indicator of evolutionary relatedness.