| Summary: | Litchi (<i>Litchi chinensis</i>) is an evergreen fruit tree grown in subtropical and tropical countries. China accounts for 71.5% of the total litchi cultivated area in the world. Anthracnose disease caused by <i>Colletotrichum</i> species is one of the most important diseases of litchi in China. In this study, the causal pathogens of litchi anthracnose in Hainan, China, were determined using phylogenetic and morphological analyses. The results identified eight <i>Colletotrichum</i> species from four species complexes, including a proposed new species. These were <i>C. karsti</i> from the <i>C. boninense</i> species complex; <i>C. gigasporum</i> and the proposed new species <i>C. danzhouense</i> from the <i>C. gigasporum</i> species complex; <i>C. arecicola</i>, <i>C. fructicola</i> species complex; <i>C. arecicola</i>, <i>C. fructicola</i> and <i>C. siamense</i> from the <i>C. gloeosporioides</i> species complex; and <i>C. musicola</i> and <i>C. plurivorum</i> from the <i>C. orchidearum</i> species complex. Pathogenicity tests showed that all eight species could infect litchi leaves using a wound inoculation method, although the pathogenicity was different in different species. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first report that identifies <i>C. arecicola</i>, <i>C. danzhouense</i>, <i>C. gigasporum</i> and <i>C. musicola</i> as etiological agents of litchi anthracnose.
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