Mycena vitilis
Encyclopedia
Mycena vitilis, commonly known as the snapping bonnet, is a species of inedible mushroom
in the Mycenaceae
family. It is found in Europe and North America, where it grows on the ground among leaves in damp places, especially under alder
. The small pale gray to whitish fruit bodies
are usually attached to small sticks buried in the leaves and detritus
. They are distinguished by their long, slender stems
that root into the ground, and by the grooved cap
that reaches diameters of up to 2.2 cm (0.866141732283465 in). The grayish-white gills on the underside of the cap are distantly spaced, and adnately
attached to the stem. M. vitilis contains strobilurin B
, a fungicidal compound with potential use in agriculture.
in 1838, it was assigned to Mycena vitilis in 1872 by Lucien Quélet
. The white-bodied variant Mycena vitilis var. corsica has been described from Italy, and differs from the main species by its white fruit bodies and differing measurements for several microscopic characters. Carleton Rea
named another variety amsegetes (meaning "field by the roadside"), which differs from the type variety by its "obsoletely umbonate" cap, its shorter and thicker stem, and its typical habitat of meadows and roadsides. The name "Mycena filopes" has also been confusingly applied to this species by some authors, although M. filopes (Bull.) P. Kumm. is a species that is recognized as being distinct from M. vitilis".
The specific epithet vitilis is derived from the Latin
word for "good for tying or binding with", or "plaited". The mushroom's common name
is the "snapping bonnet". In his 1871 Handbook of British Fungi, Mordecai Cubitt Cooke
called it the "flexile Mycena".
of M. vitilis is initially conic or bell-shaped, but flattens out in maturity, and typically reaches dimensions of up to 2.2 cm (0.866141732283465 in). When young, the cap margin is pressed against the stem, but as the cap expands it becomes bell-shaped or somewhat umbonate
, and the margin flattens out or curves inward. The cap surface is initially hoary but soon becomes polished and slimy when moist, or shiny when dry. The cap margin is even, and has slight grooves that mark the position of the gills underneath. The cap color is beige (sometimes with a grayish tinge) with paler margins, fading to pale gray or nearly white in age. Occasionally, the mushroom cap has a strong brownish tint when fresh. Moist mushrooms have a slightly sticky surface. The flesh
is thin but pliant, grayish or pallid, cartilaginous, and lacks any distinctive odor and taste.
The gills are attached by a tooth and are narrowly adnate, close to subdistant, narrow, equal, white or grayish, and with edges concolorous and often slightly eroded. Berkeley
noted that the gills "vary a good deal in colour, and are sometimes very dark". The stem
is 6 – long, 1.5 – thick, equal in width throughout, cartilaginous and tough. The stem color is brown with a tinge of pink, and the color lightens towards the top. It is usually straight but often curved toward the base, and roots into in the debris, or is attached to sticks. Smith has noted that in optimal weather conditions, "robust" forms may be found that are "strict and rigid in their appearance." The buried portion of the stem is covered with thick, stiff whitish hairs, and is surrounded with a thin subgelatinous layer, which causes it to be slimy to the touch. Its color is initially bluish-black, soon gray, nearly the same color as the cap, with the apex somewhat fibrous-striate. The mushroom is inedible.
s are ellipsoid, hyaline
, amyloid
, and measure 9–11 by 5–6 μm
. The basidia (spore-bearing cells) are four-spored. The pleurocystidia (cystidia on the gill face) are not differentiated or are occasionally present near the gill edge and similar to cheilocystidia (cystidia on the gill edge). The cheilocystidia, which measure 32–46 by 8–14 μm, are tapered on either end and can have two to several obtuse fingerlike projections arising from the apex. The gill flesh stains vinaceous-brown in iodine. The subhymenium (the tissue layer directly underneath the hymenium
) is made of narrow, interwoven hypha
e, with the central portion composed of long, cylindrical, and moderately broad cells. The flesh of the cap has a fairly thick subgelatinous pellicle, a well-differentiated hypoderm, and a filamentous tramal body. All except the pellicle stain vinaceous-brown in iodine.
in hardwood or mixed conifer and hardwood forests. Along the Pacific Coast
it is sometimes abundant in Red alder
slashes. In eastern North America it is quite commonly found growing in the autumn months of October and November with M. semivestipes
and M. pullata. The fungus is widely distributed in Europe (for example, Britain, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal).
s are aromatic compounds produced by some fungi that help them secure resources by giving them an advantage against other competing fungi. They have been investigated for potential use as lead compound
s for agricultural fungicide
s.
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...
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. It is found in Europe and North America, where it grows on the ground among leaves in damp places, especially under alder
Alder
Alder is the common name of a genus of flowering plants belonging to the birch family . The genus comprises about 30 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, few reaching large size, distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and in the Americas along the Andes southwards to...
. The small pale gray to whitish 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...
are usually attached to small sticks buried in the leaves and detritus
Detritus
Detritus is a biological term used to describe dead or waste organic material.Detritus may also refer to:* Detritus , a geological term used to describe the particles of rock produced by weathering...
. They are distinguished by their long, slender 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...
that root into the ground, and by the grooved 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...
that reaches diameters of up to 2.2 cm (0.866141732283465 in). The grayish-white gills on the underside of the cap are distantly spaced, and adnately
Adnation
Adnation in plants is the "union of unlike parts; organically united or fused with another dissimilar part, e.g. an ovary to a calyx tube, or stamens to petals". This is in contrast to connation, the fusion of similar organs....
attached to the stem. M. vitilis contains strobilurin B
Strobilurin
Strobilurins are a group of chemical compounds used in agriculture as fungicides. They are part of the larger group of QoI inhibitors, which act to inhibit the respiratory chain at the level of Complex III....
, a fungicidal compound with potential use in agriculture.
Taxonomy and naming
First described as Agaricus vitilis by Swedish mycologist Elias Magnus FriesElias Magnus Fries
-External links:*, Authors of fungal names, Mushroom, the Journal of Wild Mushrooming.*...
in 1838, it was assigned to Mycena vitilis in 1872 by 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....
. The white-bodied variant Mycena vitilis var. corsica has been described from Italy, and differs from the main species by its white fruit bodies and differing measurements for several microscopic characters. Carleton Rea
Carleton Rea
Carleton Rea was an English mycologist, botanist, and naturalist.-Background and education:Carleton Rea was born in Worcester, the son of the City Coroner. He was educated at The King's School and Magdalen College, Oxford, where he studied law...
named another variety amsegetes (meaning "field by the roadside"), which differs from the type variety by its "obsoletely umbonate" cap, its shorter and thicker stem, and its typical habitat of meadows and roadsides. The name "Mycena filopes" has also been confusingly applied to this species by some authors, although M. filopes (Bull.) P. Kumm. is a species that is recognized as being distinct from M. vitilis".
The specific epithet vitilis 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 "good for tying or binding with", or "plaited". The mushroom's common name
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...
is the "snapping bonnet". In his 1871 Handbook of British Fungi, Mordecai Cubitt Cooke
Mordecai Cubitt Cooke
Mordecai Cubitt Cooke was an English botanist and mycologist.Cooke came from a mercantile family in Horning, Norfolk, and worked as an apprentice to a fabric merchant before becoming a clerk in a law firm, but his chief interest was in botany. He founded the Society of Amateur Botanists in 1862...
called it the "flexile Mycena".
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...
of M. vitilis is initially conic or bell-shaped, but flattens out in maturity, and typically reaches dimensions of up to 2.2 cm (0.866141732283465 in). When young, the cap margin is pressed against the stem, but as the cap expands it becomes bell-shaped or somewhat umbonate
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...
, and the margin flattens out or curves inward. The cap surface is initially hoary but soon becomes polished and slimy when moist, or shiny when dry. The cap margin is even, and has slight grooves that mark the position of the gills underneath. The cap color is beige (sometimes with a grayish tinge) with paler margins, fading to pale gray or nearly white in age. Occasionally, the mushroom cap has a strong brownish tint when fresh. Moist mushrooms have a slightly sticky surface. 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 thin but pliant, grayish or pallid, cartilaginous, and lacks any distinctive odor and taste.
The gills are attached by a tooth and are narrowly adnate, close to subdistant, narrow, equal, white or grayish, and with edges concolorous and often slightly eroded. Berkeley
Miles Joseph Berkeley
Miles Joseph Berkeley was an English cryptogamist and clergyman, and one of the founders of the science of plant pathology....
noted that the gills "vary a good deal in colour, and are sometimes very dark". 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 6 – long, 1.5 – thick, equal in width throughout, cartilaginous and tough. The stem color is brown with a tinge of pink, and the color lightens towards the top. It is usually straight but often curved toward the base, and roots into in the debris, or is attached to sticks. Smith has noted that in optimal weather conditions, "robust" forms may be found that are "strict and rigid in their appearance." The buried portion of the stem is covered with thick, stiff whitish hairs, and is surrounded with a thin subgelatinous layer, which causes it to be slimy to the touch. Its color is initially bluish-black, soon gray, nearly the same color as the cap, with the apex somewhat fibrous-striate. The mushroom is inedible.
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 ellipsoid, 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...
, 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...
, and measure 9–11 by 5–6 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 (spore-bearing cells) are four-spored. The pleurocystidia (cystidia on the gill face) are not differentiated or are occasionally present near the gill edge and similar to cheilocystidia (cystidia on the gill edge). The cheilocystidia, which measure 32–46 by 8–14 μm, are tapered on either end and can have two to several obtuse fingerlike projections arising from the apex. The gill flesh stains vinaceous-brown in iodine. The subhymenium (the tissue layer directly underneath the hymenium
Hymenium
The hymenium is the tissue layer on the hymenophore of a fungal fruiting body where the cells develop into basidia or asci, which produce spores. In some species all of the cells of the hymenium develop into basidia or asci, while in others some cells develop into sterile cells called cystidia or...
) is made of narrow, interwoven hypha
Hypha
A hypha is a long, branching filamentous structure of a fungus, and also of unrelated Actinobacteria. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium; yeasts are unicellular fungi that do not grow as hyphae.-Structure:A hypha consists of one or...
e, with the central portion composed of long, cylindrical, and moderately broad cells. The flesh of the cap has a fairly thick subgelatinous pellicle, a well-differentiated hypoderm, and a filamentous tramal body. All except the pellicle stain vinaceous-brown in iodine.
Habitat and distribution
The fruit bodies of Mycena vitilis are found growing scattered or in groups on debrisForest 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...
in hardwood or mixed conifer and hardwood forests. Along the Pacific Coast
Pacific Coast
A country's Pacific coast is the part of its coast bordering the Pacific Ocean.-The Americas:Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western border.* Geography of Canada* Geography of Chile* Geography of Colombia...
it is sometimes abundant in Red alder
Red Alder
Alnus rubra, the Red alder, is a deciduous broadleaf tree native to western North America.-Description:It is the largest species of alder in North America and one of the largest in the world, reaching heights of 20–35 m. The official tallest red alder stands 32 meters tall in Clatsop County, Oregon...
slashes. In eastern North America it is quite commonly found growing in the autumn months of October and November with M. semivestipes
Mycena semivestipes
Mycena vestipes is a species of fungus in the Mycenaceae family. First described in 1895 as Omphalina semivestipes by Charles Horton Peck, it was transferred to Mycena in 1947 by Alexander H. Smith....
and M. pullata. The fungus is widely distributed in Europe (for example, Britain, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal).
Chemistry
The fruit bodies of Mycena vitilis contain the chlorinated compound strobilurin B. StrobilurinStrobilurin
Strobilurins are a group of chemical compounds used in agriculture as fungicides. They are part of the larger group of QoI inhibitors, which act to inhibit the respiratory chain at the level of Complex III....
s are aromatic compounds produced by some fungi that help them secure resources by giving them an advantage against other competing fungi. They have been investigated for potential use as lead compound
Lead compound
A lead compound in drug discovery is a chemical compound that has pharmacological or biological activity and whose chemical structure is used as a starting point for chemical modifications in order to improve potency, selectivity, or pharmacokinetic parameters.Lead compounds are often found in...
s for agricultural fungicide
Fungicide
Fungicides are chemical compounds or biological organisms used to kill or inhibit fungi or fungal spores. Fungi can cause serious damage in agriculture, resulting in critical losses of yield, quality and profit. Fungicides are used both in agriculture and to fight fungal infections in animals...
s.
External links
- Mushroom Hobby Discusses morphological variability, and variation in various authors' description of the species