Mycena adscendens
Encyclopedia
Mycena adscendens, commonly known as the frosty bonnet, is a species of fungus
in the Mycenaceae
family. The fungus produces small fruit bodies
(mushrooms) with caps
up to 3.5 mm (0.137795275590551 in) in diameter, supported by thin stems
up to 2 cm (0.78740157480315 in) long. It is distributed in the United States, where it has been found from Washington to California
, Europe, and Turkey. The fruit bodies grow in fallen twigs and other woody debris, including fallen hazel nuts. The variety carpophila has been found in Japan.
who assigned the species its current name in a 1981 publication. According to the taxonomic
authority Index Fungorum
, Miles Berkeley's 1836 Agaricus tenerrimus is the same species as Mycena adscendens, as well as all later synonyms based on this basionym
: Mycena tenerrima (Berk.) Quél. 1872; Prunulus tenerrimus (Berk.) Murrill 1916; and Pseudomycena tenerrima (Berk.) Cejp 1930. Other authorities treat the species as independent.
The mushroom is commonly
known as the "frosty bonnet". The specific epithet adscendens is derived from the Latin
word for "ascending".
is white and small, with a diameter typically ranging from 0.25 to 0.75 cm (0.0984251968503937 to 0.295275590551181 in). Initially convex to cucullate (hood-shaped), it flattens during maturity, developing visible surface grooves that correspond to the gills underneath the cap; the surface may also be covered with glistening particles, remnants of the partial veil
. The cap color is pallid gray with a whitish margin when young, but soon becomes white overall. The flesh
is membranous and fragile. The gills are free or attached to the stem by a line; they are broad, distantly-spaced, sometimes adhering to each other to form a slight collar around the stem, and white throughout their development. The stem
is 0.5 to 2 cm (0.196850393700787 to 0.78740157480315 in) long, and usually curved and threadlike. The base is enlarged into a slight bulb, which is initially nearly spherical.
The variety carpophila is characterized by its white cap up to 1 mm in diameter, and narrowly conical caulocystidia (cystidia found on the stem).
s are broadly ellipsoid, amyloid
, with dimensions of 8–10 by 5–6.5 µm
. The basidia (the spore-bearing cells) are two-spored; pleurocystidia may be present or absent. If present, they are similar to the cheilocystidia. The cheilocystidia are abundant, measuring 28–44 by 8–12 µm. They are variable in shape, often fusoid-ventricose or with 2–3 needle-like projections arising from the apex, the projections forked at times, the ventricose portions covered with short rodlike protuberances or merely verrucose. The flesh of the gills is vinaceous-brown when stained in iodine. The flesh of the cap is made up of greatly enlarged cells, with the surface covered with club-shaped to almost globular cells measuring 25–40 by about 20 µm. Their walls are finely verrucose (covered with small warts), and all but of the verrucose cells are vinaceous-brown in iodine.
. The former is distinguished from M. adscendens by a stem base that is not swollen or disc-like, the latter by its larger and sturdier fruit body.
s during the spring and autumn. They are also found growing on hazel nuts that have fallen to the ground; two other Mycenas known to grow on this substrate
include M discopus and M. nucicola. In the United States, it is distributed from Washington to California
. It is also found in Europe, and has been collected in Amasya Province
, Turkey. The variety carpophila was reported in Japan in 2003.
Fungus
A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...
in the Mycenaceae
Mycenaceae
The Mycenaceae are a family of fungi in the order Agaricales. According to the Dictionary of the Fungi , the family contains 10 genera and 705 species. This is one of several families that were separated from the Tricholomataceae as a result of phylogenetic analyses...
family. The fungus produces small fruit bodies
Basidiocarp
In fungi, a basidiocarp, basidiome or basidioma , is the sporocarp of a basidiomycete, the multicellular structure on which the spore-producing hymenium is borne. Basidiocarps are characteristic of the hymenomycetes; rusts and smuts do not produce such structures...
(mushrooms) with caps
Pileus (mycology)
The pileus is the technical name for the cap, or cap-like part, of a basidiocarp or ascocarp that supports a spore-bearing surface, the hymenium. The hymenium may consist of lamellae, tubes, or teeth, on the underside of the pileus...
up to 3.5 mm (0.137795275590551 in) in diameter, supported by thin stems
Stipe (mycology)
thumb|150px|right|Diagram of a [[basidiomycete]] stipe with an [[annulus |annulus]] and [[volva |volva]]In mycology a stipe refers to the stem or stalk-like feature supporting the cap of a mushroom. Like all tissues of the mushroom other than the hymenium, the stipe is composed of sterile hyphal...
up to 2 cm (0.78740157480315 in) long. It is distributed in the United States, where it has been found from Washington to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Europe, and Turkey. The fruit bodies grow in fallen twigs and other woody debris, including fallen hazel nuts. The variety carpophila has been found in Japan.
Taxonomy
The species was originally named Agaricus adscendens by Wilhelm Gottfried Lasch in 1829. It was Dutch mycologist Maas GeesteranusRudolph Arnold Maas Geesteranus
Rudolph Arnold Maas Geesteranus, born 20 January 1911 in The Hague, died May 18 2003 in Oegstgeest, was a Dutch mycologist.-References:...
who assigned the species its current name in a 1981 publication. According to the taxonomic
Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. The field of taxonomy, sometimes referred to as "biological taxonomy", revolves around the description and use of taxonomic units, known as taxa...
authority Index Fungorum
Index Fungorum
Index Fungorum, an international project to index all formal names in the Fungi Kingdom. Somewhat comparable to the IPNI, but with more contributing institutions....
, Miles Berkeley's 1836 Agaricus tenerrimus is the same species as Mycena adscendens, as well as all later synonyms based on this basionym
Basionym
Basionym is a term used in botany, regulated by the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature...
: Mycena tenerrima (Berk.) Quél. 1872; Prunulus tenerrimus (Berk.) Murrill 1916; and Pseudomycena tenerrima (Berk.) Cejp 1930. Other authorities treat the species as independent.
The mushroom is commonly
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
known as the "frosty bonnet". The specific epithet adscendens is derived from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
word for "ascending".
Description
The capPileus (mycology)
The pileus is the technical name for the cap, or cap-like part, of a basidiocarp or ascocarp that supports a spore-bearing surface, the hymenium. The hymenium may consist of lamellae, tubes, or teeth, on the underside of the pileus...
is white and small, with a diameter typically ranging from 0.25 to 0.75 cm (0.0984251968503937 to 0.295275590551181 in). Initially convex to cucullate (hood-shaped), it flattens during maturity, developing visible surface grooves that correspond to the gills underneath the cap; the surface may also be covered with glistening particles, remnants of the partial veil
Partial veil
thumb|150px|right|Developmental stages of [[Agaricus campestris]] showing the role and evolution of a partial veilPartial veil is a mycological term used to describe a temporary structure of tissue found on the fruiting bodies of some basidiomycete fungi, typically agarics...
. The cap color is pallid gray with a whitish margin when young, but soon becomes white overall. The flesh
Trama (mycology)
In mycology trama is a term for the inner, fleshy portion of a mushroom's basidiocarp, or fruit body. It is distinct from the outer layer of tissue, known as the pileipellis or cuticle, and from the spore-bearing tissue layer known as the hymenium....
is membranous and fragile. The gills are free or attached to the stem by a line; they are broad, distantly-spaced, sometimes adhering to each other to form a slight collar around the stem, and white throughout their development. The stem
Stipe (mycology)
thumb|150px|right|Diagram of a [[basidiomycete]] stipe with an [[annulus |annulus]] and [[volva |volva]]In mycology a stipe refers to the stem or stalk-like feature supporting the cap of a mushroom. Like all tissues of the mushroom other than the hymenium, the stipe is composed of sterile hyphal...
is 0.5 to 2 cm (0.196850393700787 to 0.78740157480315 in) long, and usually curved and threadlike. The base is enlarged into a slight bulb, which is initially nearly spherical.
The variety carpophila is characterized by its white cap up to 1 mm in diameter, and narrowly conical caulocystidia (cystidia found on the stem).
Microscopic characteristics
The sporeSpore
In biology, a spore is a reproductive structure that is adapted for dispersal and surviving for extended periods of time in unfavorable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many bacteria, plants, algae, fungi and some protozoa. According to scientist Dr...
s are broadly ellipsoid, amyloid
Amyloid (mycology)
In mycology the term amyloid refers to a crude chemical test using iodine in either Melzer's reagent or Lugol's solution, to produce a black to blue-black positive reaction. It is called amyloid because starch gives a similar reaction, and that reaction for starch is also called an amyloid reaction...
, with dimensions of 8–10 by 5–6.5 µm
Micrometre
A micrometer , is by definition 1×10-6 of a meter .In plain English, it means one-millionth of a meter . Its unit symbol in the International System of Units is μm...
. The basidia (the spore-bearing cells) are two-spored; pleurocystidia may be present or absent. If present, they are similar to the cheilocystidia. The cheilocystidia are abundant, measuring 28–44 by 8–12 µm. They are variable in shape, often fusoid-ventricose or with 2–3 needle-like projections arising from the apex, the projections forked at times, the ventricose portions covered with short rodlike protuberances or merely verrucose. The flesh of the gills is vinaceous-brown when stained in iodine. The flesh of the cap is made up of greatly enlarged cells, with the surface covered with club-shaped to almost globular cells measuring 25–40 by about 20 µm. Their walls are finely verrucose (covered with small warts), and all but of the verrucose cells are vinaceous-brown in iodine.
Similar species
Other Mycenas that resemble M. adscendens include M. alphitophora and M. stylobatesMycena stylobates
Mycena stylobates, commonly known as the bulbous bonnet, is a species of inedible mushroom in the Mycenaceae family. Found in North America and Europe, it produces small whitish to gray fruit bodies with bell-shaped caps that are up to in diameter...
. The former is distinguished from M. adscendens by a stem base that is not swollen or disc-like, the latter by its larger and sturdier fruit body.
Habitat and distribution
Fruit bodies of Mycena adscendens are found scattered to grouped together on twigs, bark, and woody debris of conifers and hardwoodHardwood
Hardwood is wood from angiosperm trees . It may also be used for those trees themselves: these are usually broad-leaved; in temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen.Hardwood contrasts with softwood...
s during the spring and autumn. They are also found growing on hazel nuts that have fallen to the ground; two other Mycenas known to grow on this substrate
Substrate (biology)
In biology a substrate is the surface a plant or animal lives upon and grows on. A substrate can include biotic or abiotic materials and animals. For example, encrusting algae that lives on a rock can be substrate for another animal that lives on top of the algae. See also substrate .-External...
include M discopus and M. nucicola. In the United States, it is distributed from Washington to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It is also found in Europe, and has been collected in Amasya Province
Amasya Province
Amasya Province is a province of Turkey, situated on the Yeşil River in the Black Sea Region to the north of the country. Area 5,520 km². Population 334,786....
, Turkey. The variety carpophila was reported in Japan in 2003.