Ascocarp

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Ascocarp

An ascocarp, or ascoma (plural: ascomata), is the fruiting body (sporocarp

Sporocarp

Sporocarp can refer to any of several structures whose primary function is the production and release of spores.* Sporocarp , a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures are borne....
) of an ascomycete fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hypha

Hypha

A hypha is a long, branching filamentous cell of a fungus, and also of unrelated Actinobacteria. In fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium....
e and may contain millions of asci
Ascus

An ascus is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in Ascomycota fungi. On average, asci normally contain 8 ascospores, produced by a meiosis cell division followed, in most species, by a mitosis cell division....
, each of which contains typically eight ascospores. Ascocarps are most commonly bowl-shaped, but may take on a number of other designs.

Classification of ascocarps
The ascocarp is classified according to its placement (in ways which are not fundamental to the basic taxonomy).

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An ascocarp, or ascoma (plural: ascomata), is the fruiting body (sporocarp

Sporocarp

Hypha

Classification of ascocarps

The ascocarp is classified according to its placement (in ways which are not fundamental to the basic taxonomy). It is termed epigeous if it grows above ground, as with the morel

Morel

Morchella, the true morels, is a genus of edible mushroom closely related to anatomically simpler Cup fungus. These distinctive mushrooms appear honeycomb-like in that the upper portion is composed of a network of ridges with pits between them....
s, whilst underground ascocarps, such as truffle

Truffle

A truffle is a fungal fruiting body that develops underground and relies on mycophagy for spore dispersal. Almost all truffles are ectomycorrhizal and are therefore usually found in close association with trees....
s are hypogeous.

The form of the hymenium

Hymenium

The hymenium is the tissue layer on the hymenophore of a fungal fruiting body where the cells develop into basidium or ascus, which produce spores....
is divided into the following types (which are important for classification). Apothecia can be relatively large and fleshy, whereas the others are microscopic — about the size of flecks of ground pepper.

Apothecium: here the ascocarp is open above like a cup. The fertile layer is free, so that many spores can be dispersed simultaneously. The morel
Morel

Morchella, the true morels, is a genus of edible mushroom closely related to anatomically simpler Cup fungus. These distinctive mushrooms appear honeycomb-like in that the upper portion is composed of a network of ridges with pits between them....
, Morchella, an edible ascocarp
Ascocarp

An ascocarp, or ascoma , is the fruiting body of an ascomycete fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hyphae and may contain millions of ascus, each of which contains typically eight ascospores....
, not a mushroom, favored by gourmets, is a mass of apothecia fused together in a single large structure or cap. The genera Helvella
Helvella

Helvella is a genus of ascomycete fungus of the Helvellaceae family. The mushrooms, commonly known as elfin saddles, are identified by their irregularly shaped caps, fluted Plant stems, and fuzzy undersurfaces....
and Gyromitra
Gyromitra

'Gyromitra' is a genus of Ascomycota mushrooms found in the northern hemisphere. The most famous member is the controversial false morel ....
are similar.

Cleistothecium: in this case the ascocarp is round with the hymenium enclosed, so the spores do not automatically get released, and fungi with cleistothecia have had to develop new strategies to disseminate their spores. The truffles, for instance, have solved this problem by attracting animals such as wild boar
Boar

The wild boar , or colloquially simply called the boar, is an omnivorous, wikt:gregarious mammal of the family Suidae. It is native across much of Central Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and much of Asia as far south as Indonesia, and has been introduced elsewhere....
s which break open the tasty ascocarps and can spread the spores inside over a wide area. Cleistothecia are found mostly in fungi which have little room available for their ascocarps, for instance those which live under the bark of trees or under the ground like truffles. Also, the dermatophyte
Dermatophyte

A dermatophyte is a parasitic fungus that infects the skin. The term embraces the imperfect fungi of the genera Epidermophyton, Microsporum and Trichophyton....
Arthroderma forms cleistothecia.

*Perithecium: this has the shape of a skittle or a ball. Its distinguishing feature is that on top it has a small pore, the ostiole, through which the spores are released one by one when ripe (in contrast to apothecia where they are released together). Perithecia are found for example on Xylaria
Xylaria

Xylaria is a genus of Ascomycota commonly found growing on dead wood.Two of the common species of the genus are Xylaria hypoxylon and Xylaria polymorpha ...
(Dead Man’s Fingers, Candle Snuff) and Nectria
Nectria

This article is about a genus of fungi. For the echinoderm genus, see Nectria .Nectria is a genus of Ascomycetes fungi. They are most often encountered as saprophytes on decaying wood but some species can also occur as parasites of trees, especially fruit trees and a number of other hardwood trees....
.

Pseudothecium: this is similar to a perithecium, but the asci are not regularly organised into a hymenium and they are bitunicate, having a double wall which expands when it takes up water and shoots the enclosed spores out suddenly to disperse them. Example species are Apple scab
Apple scab

Apple scab is a disease of apple trees caused by the ascomycete fungus Venturia inaequalis. The disease manifests as dull black or grey-brown lesions on the surface of tree leaves, buds or fruits....
(Venturia inaequalis) and the horse chestnut disease Guignardia aesculi.

Ascocarp

Classification of ascocarps

See also