Mycena arcangeliana
Encyclopedia
Mycena arcangeliana is a species of Mycenaceae
fungus. It has been known by a number of scientific names, and its taxonomy
is still somewhat disputed. It produces small mushroom
s with caps
varying in colour from whitish to a darker grey-brown, and stems
of an olive-greyish that fades with age. The mushrooms can be mistaken for the similar Mycena flavescens
. They have a mild taste, but a strong smell of iodoform
; they are not edible
. The species grows on dead wood in autumn months, and can be found throughout Europe.
by Giacomo Bresadola
in 1904; the species was listed along with 41 others found in Pisa
, in an article by Egidio Barsali published in the Bollettino Della Societa Botanica Italiana (Bulletin of the Botanical Society of Italy). Authors Roger Phillips and Paul Sterry both describe the name Mycena oortiana as synonymous
; M. oortiana was a name given by Frederich Hora in 1960 based on Robert Kühner
's 1938 name for the variety Mycena arcangeliana var. oortiana, an invalid name. Phillips had earlier considered M. arcangeliana var. oortiana to be a synonym of M. oortiana, and MycoBank
lists it as a synonym of Lucien Quélet
's Mycena olivascens. However, Index Fungorum
lists both M. olivascens and Kühner's Mycena vitilis var. olivascens as synonyms of M. arcangeliana. The specific epithet arcangeliana may be in honour of Giovanni Arcangeli
, who collected the species in the Orto botanico di Pisa
. M. arcangeliana is commonly known
as the angel's bonnet, or the late-season bonnet.
Within the genus Mycena
, it is found in the section Filipedes, on account of the cheilocystidia
covered with evenly spaced, short cylindrical excrescences, and its size and occurrence on wood. It can be separated from the other members of the section on account of a cap
with yellowish to olive shades, gills with pinkish hints and stems with vaguely violet colouration.
s have caps
of between 1 and 5 cm (0.393700787401575 and 2 in) in diametre which are conical in shape in younger mushrooms, becoming bell-shaped with a broad umbo
in older specimens. The oldest mushrooms have caps which are almost completely flat. The colouration varies from a whitish to a darker grey-brown, sometimes with tints of olive or yellow, and it has furrows on the typically translucent surface. However, it is hygrophanous
, and dries to a much paler colour. The cylindrical stem
measures between 20 and 40 mm (0.78740157480315 and 1.6 in) in length, by 1 and 2 mm (0.0393700787401575 and 0.078740157480315 in) in width. In young mushrooms, it is a olive-greyish colour, tinted with lilac
, though it fades as the mushroom ages. The very top of the stem is a whitish colour, while the base is covered in white hairs. It is smooth and silky in texture, and there is no ring
. The crowded gills are adnexed, that is, connected to the stem by only part of their depth, and are white in colour, turning pinkish as the mushroom ages. The gill edges are somewhat toothed. The flesh
has a mild taste, but a strong smell of iodoform
. In the cap, it is white, while in the stem, it is grey. The mushrooms are not edible
.
, while the spore
s are shaped like apple seeds and amyloid
, meaning that they stain a dark colour in Melzer's reagent
or Lugol's solution. The basidia are four-spored. They measure from between 7 and 8 micrometre
s (µm) by 4.5 and 5 µm. There are a large number of hyaline
cheilocystidia (cystidia on the edge of the gills) which are club-shaped or ovate. They have thin cell wall
s, and are covered in grain-like warts. The pleurocystidia (the cystidia on the face of the gill) are similar in appearance. The pileipellis
is made up of wart-covered hyphae measuring between 2 and 4.5 µm wide and up to 30 µm long. The outermost layer of the stem is made up hyphae with short, cylindrical hairs. The hyphae have clamp connection
s.
, a species found in both hardwood
and softwood
forests on the floor
among leaf or needle litter or grassland. M. flavescens typically has a whiter cap and a smell reminiscent of radish
. M. peyerimhoffi, known from Algeria, has a similar cap colour to M. arcangeliana, but has a yellow stem. M. limonia, known from the Netherlands, has a lemon-yellow cap and stem and more gills. Another species similar in appearance is M. metata
, which has a sweet taste.
wood, favouring beech
and ash, where it grows in "small troops". It has also been recorded less frequently on conifers, bracken
and Japanese knotweed
. There have been reports from grassland, but these are probably a misidentification of M. flavescens. It is infrequently to commonly found in late summer to autumn months in the British Isles, though it is more commonly encountered in the south. Its distribution is fairly widespread elsewhere in Europe, though it is less common. It has been listed as vulnerable on the Red List of Threatened Fungi in Norway. "Mycena oortiana", which was rarely found in mycological literature, was described as a predominantly west-European species; however, M. arcangeliana has also been recorded in Scandinavia, Greenland, and Italy, from where it was first described.
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...
fungus. It has been known by a number of scientific names, and its taxonomy
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...
is still somewhat disputed. It produces small mushroom
Mushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
s 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...
varying in colour from whitish to a darker grey-brown, and 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...
of an olive-greyish that fades with age. The mushrooms can be mistaken for the similar Mycena flavescens
Mycena flavescens
Mycena flavescens is a species of Mycenaceae fungus. It was first described scientifically by the Czech mycologist Josef Velenovský in 1920, based on specimens collected in Mnichovice in 1915. The mushroom is edible....
. They have a mild taste, but a strong smell of iodoform
Iodoform
Iodoform is the organoiodine compound with the formula CHI3. A pale yellow, crystalline, volatile substance, it has a penetrating odor and, analogous to chloroform, sweetish taste. It is occasionally used as a disinfectant...
; they are not edible
Edible mushroom
Edible mushrooms are the fleshy and edible fruiting bodies of several species of fungi. Mushrooms belong to the macrofungi, because their fruiting structures are large enough to be seen with the naked eye. They can appear either below ground or above ground where they may be picked by hand...
. The species grows on dead wood in autumn months, and can be found throughout Europe.
Taxonomy, naming, and classification
Mycena arcangeliana was first describedSpecies description
A species description or type description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species which have been described previously, or are...
by Giacomo Bresadola
Giacomo Bresadola
Giacomo Bresadola 14 February 1847 – Trento 9 June 1929) was an eminent Italian mycologist. Fungi he named include the deadly Lepiota helveola and Inocybe patouillardii, though the latter is now known as Inocybe erubescens as this latter description predated Bresadola's by a year...
in 1904; the species was listed along with 41 others found in Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
, in an article by Egidio Barsali published in the Bollettino Della Societa Botanica Italiana (Bulletin of the Botanical Society of Italy). Authors Roger Phillips and Paul Sterry both describe the name Mycena oortiana as synonymous
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
; M. oortiana was a name given by Frederich Hora in 1960 based on Robert Kühner
Robert Kühner
Robert Kühner, born Paris 15 March 1903, died Lyon 27 February 1996, was a French mycologist most notable for reviewing many agaric genera.-References:...
's 1938 name for the variety Mycena arcangeliana var. oortiana, an invalid name. Phillips had earlier considered M. arcangeliana var. oortiana to be a synonym of M. oortiana, and MycoBank
MycoBank
MycoBank is an online database, documenting new mycological names and combinations, eventually combined with descriptions and illustrations. It is run by the Centraalbureau voor Schimmelcultures fungal biodiversity center in Utrecht....
lists it as a synonym of Lucien Quélet
Lucien Quélet
thumb|Lucien QuéletLucien Quélet was a French mycologist and naturalist who discovered several species and was the founder of the Société mycologique de France, a society devoted to mycological studies....
's Mycena olivascens. However, 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....
lists both M. olivascens and Kühner's Mycena vitilis var. olivascens as synonyms of M. arcangeliana. The specific epithet arcangeliana may be in honour of Giovanni Arcangeli
Giovanni Arcangeli
Giovanni Arcangeli was an Italian botanist from Florence.In 1862 he earned his degree in natural sciences from the University of Pisa, where he later became an instructor and professor...
, who collected the species in the Orto botanico di Pisa
Orto botanico di Pisa
The Orto botanico di Pisa, also known as the Orto Botanico dell'Università di Pisa, is a botanical garden operated by the University of Pisa, and located at via Luca Ghini 5, Pisa, Italy...
. M. arcangeliana is commonly known
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...
as the angel's bonnet, or the late-season bonnet.
Within the genus Mycena
Mycena
Mycena is a large genus of small saprotrophic mushrooms that are rarely more than a few centimeters in width. They are characterized by a white spore print, a small conical or bell-shaped cap, and a thin fragile stem. Most are gray or brown, but a few species have brighter colors. Most have a...
, it is found in the section Filipedes, on account of the cheilocystidia
Cystidium
A cystidium is a relatively large cell found on the hymenium of a basidiomycete , often between clusters of basidia. Since cystidia have highly varied and distinct shapes that are often unique to a particular species or genus, they are a useful micromorphological characteristic in the...
covered with evenly spaced, short cylindrical excrescences, and its size and occurrence on wood. It can be separated from the other members of the section on account of a cap
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...
with yellowish to olive shades, gills with pinkish hints and stems with vaguely violet colouration.
Description
Mycena arcangeliana mushroomMushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
s have 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...
of between 1 and 5 cm (0.393700787401575 and 2 in) in diametre which are conical in shape in younger mushrooms, becoming bell-shaped with a broad umbo
Umbo (mycology)
thumb|right|[[Cantharellula umbonata]] has an umbo.thumb|right|The cap of [[Psilocybe makarorae]] is acutely papillate.An umbo is a raised area in the center of a mushroom cap. Caps that possess this feature are called umbonate. Umbos that are sharply pointed are called acute, while those that are...
in older specimens. The oldest mushrooms have caps which are almost completely flat. The colouration varies from a whitish to a darker grey-brown, sometimes with tints of olive or yellow, and it has furrows on the typically translucent surface. However, it is hygrophanous
Hygrophanous
The adjective hygrophanous refers to the color change of mushroom tissue as it loses or absorbs water, which causes the pileipellis to become more transparent when wet and opaque when dry....
, and dries to a much paler colour. The cylindrical 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...
measures between 20 and 40 mm (0.78740157480315 and 1.6 in) in length, by 1 and 2 mm (0.0393700787401575 and 0.078740157480315 in) in width. In young mushrooms, it is a olive-greyish colour, tinted with lilac
Lilac (color)
Lilac is a color that is a pale tone of violet that is a representation of the average color of most lilac flowers. It might also be described as light purple. The colors of some lilac flowers may be equivalent to the colors shown below as pale lilac, rich lilac, or deep lilac...
, though it fades as the mushroom ages. The very top of the stem is a whitish colour, while the base is covered in white hairs. It is smooth and silky in texture, and there is no ring
Annulus (mycology)
An annulus is the ring like structure sometimes found on the stipe of some species of mushrooms. The annulus represents the remaining part of the partial veil, after it has ruptured to expose the gills or other spore-producing surface. An annulus may be thick and membranous, or it may be cobweb-like...
. The crowded gills are adnexed, that is, connected to the stem by only part of their depth, and are white in colour, turning pinkish as the mushroom ages. The gill edges are somewhat toothed. 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....
has a mild taste, but a strong smell of iodoform
Iodoform
Iodoform is the organoiodine compound with the formula CHI3. A pale yellow, crystalline, volatile substance, it has a penetrating odor and, analogous to chloroform, sweetish taste. It is occasionally used as a disinfectant...
. In the cap, it is white, while in the stem, it is grey. The mushrooms are not edible
Edible mushroom
Edible mushrooms are the fleshy and edible fruiting bodies of several species of fungi. Mushrooms belong to the macrofungi, because their fruiting structures are large enough to be seen with the naked eye. They can appear either below ground or above ground where they may be picked by hand...
.
Microscopic characteristics
Mycena arcangeliana mushrooms leave a whitish spore printSpore print
thumb|300px|right|Making a spore print of the mushroom Volvariella volvacea shown in composite: mushroom cap laid on white and dark paper; cap removed after 24 hours showing pinkish-tan spore print...
, while the spore
Spore
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 shaped like apple seeds and 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...
, meaning that they stain a dark colour in Melzer's reagent
Melzer's Reagent
Melzer's reagent is a chemical reagent used by mycologists to assist with the identification of fungi.-Composition:...
or Lugol's solution. The basidia are four-spored. They measure from between 7 and 8 micrometre
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...
s (µm) by 4.5 and 5 µm. There are a large number of hyaline
Hyaline
The term hyaline denotes a substance with a glass-like appearance.-Histopathology:In histopathological medical usage, a hyaline substance appears glassy and pink after being stained with haematoxylin and eosin — usually it is an acellular, proteinaceous material...
cheilocystidia (cystidia on the edge of the gills) which are club-shaped or ovate. They have thin cell wall
Cell wall
The cell wall is the tough, usually flexible but sometimes fairly rigid layer that surrounds some types of cells. It is located outside the cell membrane and provides these cells with structural support and protection, and also acts as a filtering mechanism. A major function of the cell wall is to...
s, and are covered in grain-like warts. The pleurocystidia (the cystidia on the face of the gill) are similar in appearance. The pileipellis
Pileipellis
thumb|300px||right|The cuticle of some mushrooms, such as [[Russula mustelina]] shown here, can be peeled from the cap, and may be useful as an identification feature....
is made up of wart-covered hyphae measuring between 2 and 4.5 µm wide and up to 30 µm long. The outermost layer of the stem is made up hyphae with short, cylindrical hairs. The hyphae have clamp connection
Clamp connection
A clamp connection is a structure formed by growing hyphal cells of certain fungi. It is created to ensure each septum, or segment of hypha separated by crossed walls, receives a set of differing nuclei, which are obtained through mating of hyphae of differing sexual types...
s.
Similar species
Mycena arcangeliana is somewhat similar to the less common Mycena flavescensMycena flavescens
Mycena flavescens is a species of Mycenaceae fungus. It was first described scientifically by the Czech mycologist Josef Velenovský in 1920, based on specimens collected in Mnichovice in 1915. The mushroom is edible....
, a species found in both hardwood
Hardwood
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...
and softwood
Softwood
The term softwood is used to describe wood from trees that are known as gymnosperms.Conifers are an example. It may also be used to describe trees, which tend to be evergreen, notable exceptions being bald cypress and the larches....
forests on the floor
Forest floor
The forest floor, also called detritus, duff and the O horizon, is one of the most distinctive features of a forest ecosystem. It mainly consists of shed vegetative parts, such as leaves, branches, bark, and stems, existing in various stages of decomposition above the soil surface...
among leaf or needle litter or grassland. M. flavescens typically has a whiter cap and a smell reminiscent of radish
Radish
The radish is an edible root vegetable of the Brassicaceae family that was domesticated in Europe, in pre-Roman times. They are grown and consumed throughout the world. Radishes have numerous varieties, varying in size, color and duration of required cultivation time...
. M. peyerimhoffi, known from Algeria, has a similar cap colour to M. arcangeliana, but has a yellow stem. M. limonia, known from the Netherlands, has a lemon-yellow cap and stem and more gills. Another species similar in appearance is M. metata
Mycena metata
Mycena metata is a species of Mycenaceae fungus found in Europe. It is inedible....
, which has a sweet taste.
Habitat and distribution
Mycena arcangeliana grows on dead deciduousDeciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
wood, favouring beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
and ash, where it grows in "small troops". It has also been recorded less frequently on conifers, bracken
Bracken
Bracken are several species of large, coarse ferns of the genus Pteridium. Ferns are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells . Brackens are in the family Dennstaedtiaceae, which are noted for their large, highly...
and Japanese knotweed
Japanese knotweed
Japanese Knotweed is a large, herbaceous perennial plant, native to eastern Asia in Japan, China and Korea...
. There have been reports from grassland, but these are probably a misidentification of M. flavescens. It is infrequently to commonly found in late summer to autumn months in the British Isles, though it is more commonly encountered in the south. Its distribution is fairly widespread elsewhere in Europe, though it is less common. It has been listed as vulnerable on the Red List of Threatened Fungi in Norway. "Mycena oortiana", which was rarely found in mycological literature, was described as a predominantly west-European species; however, M. arcangeliana has also been recorded in Scandinavia, Greenland, and Italy, from where it was first described.