The lichen symbiont Wadeana represents an independent origin of hysterothecial fungi in the Eurotiomycetes.

Multilocus metagenome-assembled genomes from Wadeana dendrographa place Wadeana with strong support as sister to all Sclerococcales in Eurotiomycetes, and confirm hysterothecial ascomata there.

• Why it matters: Wadeana’s evolutionary placement has been unclear, limiting how hysterothecial ascomata and lichen symbioses within Eurotiomycetes are interpreted.
• What they did: The study used multilocus evidence from metagenome-assembled genomes from the generitype Wadeana dendrographa, then compared fungal–algal interaction evidence with other Sclerococcomycetidae examples.
• The result: Wadeana is the first confirmed case of hysterothecial ascomata in Eurotiomycetes, prompting creation of Wadeanaceae, Wadeanales, and Xylobotryomycetidae for related taxa.

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