Agaricomycetidae

Gilled Mushrooms and Boletes

General Mycology Pl P 421/521

Lecture 13

From Hibbett (2006). Mycologia 98: 917--925

Spore print

basidiospores

basidium

Basidiospore discharge
Hilar appendix

Film of water on spore

sterigmata
Buller drop

http://www.forestpathology.org/graphics/clamp.gif

Basidiocarps; basidiomes
Mushroom

an agaric or bolete basidiocarp, especially an

edible one

Toadstool

an inedible (or poisonous) basidiocarp of an

agaric or bolete

~80,000 described species

From D. R. Benjamin.
1995. Mushrooms.
Poisons and Panaceas.

10,000 fleshy macrofungi

(mushrooms)

400 species

2,000 species
probably edible

Probably poisonous
20 common

100 species

80 species grown

poisonous species

widely picked

experimentally
40 species grown
commercially

< 6 common

15-30 species

lethal species

commonly eaten

5-6 species grown

on large scale

Macroscopic characters

Spore color in mass

(spore print)
Gills or tubes

If gills, how are they

attached?
If tubes, size and
arrangement?

free

adnexed
notched
adnate

decurrent

triangular

Basidiocarp stature

Cap (pileus) shape

Stalk (stipe)
attachment
Cap margin
Presence or absence
of partial veil and
annulus
Presence or absence
of volva, universal
veil or remnants
Stalk shape
Overall proportion of
cap and stalk

Cap Shape

Stalk attachment
ECCENTRIC

LATERAL
CENTRAL

STIPELESS

Color

Cap

Color change?
Hygrophanous
Blueing
Bruising

Gills or pores

Do they change color as

the spores mature?

Stalk
Flesh

Blueing
Bruising
Reddening

Other characters

Glutinous or dry cap

Presence of latex

Texture on cap and

stalk

Color of latex,
including changes

Scales, fibrils, etc.

Overall texture of
basidiocarp

Flesh brittle, tough,

fragile

Associations

How do the mushrooms

grow?

Singly
In clumps (fairy rings?)
In clusters

Where does the

mushroom grow?

Grass, pastures, turf

On other fungal fruiting
bodies
Associated with trees
Near trees (what types of
trees?)
On decaying wood
On cones or pods

Microscopic features

Basidiospores--size,
shape, ornamentation,
germ pores
Reaction of spores in
H2SO4, Melzers, KOH
Size and shape of
basidia, number of
basidiospores/basidium
Structure of gill trama

Regular (parallel)
Irregular (interwoven)
Bilateral (divergent)
Inverse (convergent)

Microscopic characters (cont.)

Presence

of specialized cells in tertiary

mycelium

Sphaerocysts, lactiferous hyphae

Arrangement

cuticle

of cells in cap cuticle, stalk

Miscellaneous Characters
Taste

Bitter
Hot
Mild

Smell

Pleasant (mushroomy, fruity, like almonds,

etc)
Unpleasant (phenolic, fetid, etc.)

Identification

Are the spores (in

mass) white?

Russulales
Agaricales

Amanitaceae
Lepiotaceae
Hygrophoraceae
Tricholomataceae

Russulales
Brittle flesh due to
presence of
sphaerocysts
Basidiospores with
amyloid
ornamentation
Milky latex (Lactarius)
No latex (Russula)
Mycorrhizal

Russula rosacea

Lactarius deliciosus
photo by Fred Stevens

Russula brevipes (Short stemmed Russula)

Amanitaceae

Amanita muscaria (the Fly Agaric)

Free gills
Partial veil
remaining as an
annulus
Universal veil
remaining as volva
and patches on cap
Mycorrhizal
Example: Amanita

Amanita caesaria (Caesars

Mushroom)
Photos by Charles Mims

Amanita phalloides (the Death Cap)

Photo by Brenda Callan

Lepiotaceae

Free gills
Partial veil remaining
as annulus
Lack of volva
Saprotrophs, often
forming fairy rings
Example: Lepiota

Lepiota (Macrolepiota) rachodes

photo from MatchMaker

Hygrophoraceae
Waxy-looking gills
due to long, narrow
basidia
Often brightly colored
(Hygrocybe); other
species in
Hygrophorus
Mycorrhizal and
saprotrophic species

Hygrocybe coccinea

Tricholomataceae
Largest

family of white spored

mushrooms;
Many common genera, including
Armillaria, Clitocybe, Lentinus, Mycena,
Marasmius, Pleurotus, Tricholoma

Tricholomataceae: Armillaria

Photos by Raini Rippi

Tricholomataceae: Clitocybe

Clitocybe dilatata by Raini Rippi

Tricholomatacae: Lentinus and

allies

Tricholomataceae: Mycena

Tricholomatacae: Pleurotus and

allies

Pleurocybella porrigens
Angel Wings
Pleurotus sp. Oyster Mushroom

Tricholomatacae: Tricholoma

Tricholoma magnivelare (Matsutake)

Pale Spored families

Entolomatacaeex.

Basidiospores pink in mass, angular or ribbed

Attached gills
Terrestrial mushrooms (some mycorrhizal)

Plutaceaeex.

Entoloma

Pluteus

Basidiospores pinkish in mass, smooth

Many species grown on wood

Entoloma hirtipes
http://www.kki.pl/zenit/grzyby_spyt/ga710.htm

Plutaceae: Pluteus

Pluteus cervinus from MycoWeb

Are the spores dark in mass?

Agaricaceae
Coprinaceae
Strophariaceae
Cortinariacae
Gomphidiacae
Boletaceae

Agaricaceae

Chocolate brown
spores
Distinct annulus
resulting from partial
veil
Gills free
Saprotrophs
Example: Agaricus

Coprinaceae

Deep brown to black

spores with germ
pore
Saprotrophs
Often in clusters
Examples:

Coprinus (Inky Caps)

Panaeolus
Psathyrella

Inky Caps

Strophariaceae
Spores

brown, purple-brown to purple

black, with distinct germ pore
Saprotrophs
Four well-known genera:

Pholiota on wood
Stropharia on dung, humus or wood
Naematoloma in clusters on wood
Psilocybe grass, wood chips, dung

Strophariaceae: Pholiota

Strophariaceae: Stropharia

Naematoloma fasiculare

Strophariaceae: Psilocybe

Psilocybe cubensis (dried specimen) brought in to Gritman

Emergency Room by victim

Cortinariaceae

Largest brown-spored family

Identified by eliminating other families
Examples:

Cortinarius rusty brown spores, cortina, mycorrhizal

Hebeloma similar to Cortinarius but lacks cortina,
often with radish-like odor
Inocybe dull brown, yellow or gray fibrillose caps
Galerina small brown mushrooms on wood; deadly
poisonous

Cortinarius
cortina

Gomphidiaceae
Smoky-gray

to black spores that are long

and narrow (boletoid)
Waxy decurrent gills
Mycorrhizal
Examples:

Gomphidius slimy cuticle, white flesh, yellow

stalk base
Chroogomphus orange-colored flesh

Gomphidius glutinosus
(Hideous Gomphidius)

Chroogomphus rutilus
(Pine Spikes)

Boletaceae

Hymenium forms in a spongelike layer of tubes

or pores that can be cleanly separated from cap
in most taxa, but may also form gills (gilled
boletes)
Spores are brown, long and narrow (boletoid)
Mycorrhizal
Common genera:

Suillus slimy or fibrillose cap, partial veil

Fuscoboletinuslike Suillus but with darker spores,
mycorrhizal with larch
Boletus dry cap, no partial veil

Boletus edulis (King Bolete, Steinpilz, Porcini)

Boletus zelleri

Slippery Jacks

Suillus cavipes

Fuscoboletinus ochraceoroseus (Rosy Larch Bolete)

Phylloporus rhodoxanthus,
a gilled bolete

Paxillus atrotomentosus (Velvet Pax)