Phallus calongei
Encyclopedia
Phallus calongei is a species of stinkhorn
mushroom. Found in Pakistan
, it was described as new to science in 2009. Starting out as an "egg", the fully expanded fruit body
consists of a single, thick, stipe
with a cap
attached to the apex and covered with olive-green, slimy spore
-containing gleba
. It is distinguished from other similar Phallus
species by a combination of features, including a pinkish, reticulated (network-like) cap, and a stipe that is tapered at both ends. The edibility
of the mushroom is unknown.
stream in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North Western Frontier Province) in Pakistan. It was described as new to science in a 2009 Mycotaxon
publication. The specific epithet calongei honors Spanish mycologist Francisco D. Calonge who has written extensively on the Gasteromycetes, and who has himself published or co-published three Phallus species: P. atrovolvatus (Kreisel & Calonge), P. maderensis (Calonge) and P. minusculus (Kreisel & Calonge). P. calongei is one of four Phallus
species known to exist in Pakistan, the others being P. celebicus, P. impudicus
, and P. rubicundus
.
According to the infrageneric classification scheme proposed by German mycologist Hanns Kreisel
in 1996, Phallus calongei belongs in the subgenus
Phallus, section Flavophallus of the genus Phallus. Other species in this section include P. flavocostatus, P. tenuis, P. formanosus, P. calichrous, P. multicolor, and P. cinnabarinus. A number of features distinguish P. calongei from these, including: an undeveloped white volva, a stipe tapered at both ends, a deeply pitted and reticulate cap surface with pinkish ridges, and no indusium (a lacy "skirt" hanging from the cap, present in some Phallus species).
(an erect human penis) with a single elongated hollow stipe topped by a bulbous cap
-like structure at the apex. The fruit bodies of P. calongei start out appearing similar to whitish "eggs", with a membranous exoperidium
(outer tissue layer) and gelatinous, translucent endoperidium (inner tissue layer). The fully expanded fruit body consists of a single, thick, stalk with a ridged and pitted cap attached to the apex; the cap is covered with olive-green, slimy gleba. The fruit body can reach up to 24 cm (9.4 in) tall and 3 cm (1.2 in) thick. It is whitish and hollow, slightly tapered at both ends, and has a wall that consists of layers of perforated chambers. At the apex of the stalk is the "cap", which can be up to 7 cm (2.8 in) high and 4 cm (1.6 in) thick. It is bell-shaped to conical-truncate with a pitted surface. As the gleba
dissipates, the cap surface becomes strongly reticulated—forming a network of raised pinkish ridges. The tip of the cap is truncated, with a depressed and perforated surface. The gleba is olive-green, fetid, and deliquescent (melting away gradually). The spore
s are ellipsoid, smooth, and hyaline
(translucent), measuring 3.5–4.5 by 1.5–2.0 µm
. The exoperidium of the "egg" remains at the base of the fruit body as a thin, membranous, undeveloped white volva
. The edibility
of the mushroom has not been determined.
, which has a purple volva, P. macrosporus, which has a reddish volva, and P. formanosus, which has a pale pink stipe and volva.
Stinkhorn
The Phallaceae are a family of fungi, commonly known as stinkhorn mushrooms. Belonging to the fungal order Phallales, the Phallaceae have a worldwide distribution, but are especially prevalent in tropical regions. They are known for their foul smelling sticky spore masses, or gleba, borne on the...
mushroom. Found in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, it was described as new to science in 2009. Starting out as an "egg", the fully expanded fruit body
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...
consists of a single, thick, stipe
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...
with 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...
attached to the apex and covered with olive-green, slimy 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...
-containing gleba
Gleba
Gleba is the fleshy spore-bearing inner mass of fungi such as the puffball or stinkhorn.The gleba is a solid mass of spores, generated within an enclosed area within the sporocarp. The continuous maturity of the sporogenous cells leave the spores behind as a powdery mass that can be easily blown away...
. It is distinguished from other similar Phallus
Phallus (genus)
The genus Phallus, commonly known as stinkhorns, are a group of basidiomycetes which produce a foul-scented, phallic mushroom, from which their name is derived. The genus has a widespread distribution and, according to a 2008 estimate, contains 18 species. They belong to the family Phallaceae in...
species by a combination of features, including a pinkish, reticulated (network-like) cap, and a stipe that is tapered at both ends. The edibility
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...
of the mushroom is unknown.
Discovery, taxonomy and classification
Phallus calongei was discovered on June 16, 2008, near the KhanspurKhanspur
Khanspur is one of the tourist mountain resort towns of the Galyat area of Pakistan. Khanspur is a settlement in the Ayubia area and is located in Abbottabad District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan...
stream in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North Western Frontier Province) in Pakistan. It was described as new to science in a 2009 Mycotaxon
Mycotaxon
Mycotaxon is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes papers on the nomenclature and taxonomy of the fungi, including lichens....
publication. The specific epithet calongei honors Spanish mycologist Francisco D. Calonge who has written extensively on the Gasteromycetes, and who has himself published or co-published three Phallus species: P. atrovolvatus (Kreisel & Calonge), P. maderensis (Calonge) and P. minusculus (Kreisel & Calonge). P. calongei is one of four Phallus
Phallus
A phallus is an erect penis, a penis-shaped object such as a dildo, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. Any object that symbolically resembles a penis may also be referred to as a phallus; however, such objects are more often referred to as being phallic...
species known to exist in Pakistan, the others being P. celebicus, P. impudicus
Phallus impudicus
Phallus impudicus, known colloquially as the common stinkhorn, is a widespread fungus recognizable for its foul odor and its phallic shape when mature, the latter feature giving rise to several names in 17th-century England. It is a common mushroom in Europe and western North America, where it...
, and P. rubicundus
Phallus rubicundus
Phallus rubicundus is a species of stinkhorn.-Distribution:It grows mainly in southern North America, in lawns, gardens and yards. This species can also grow in wood chips and sandy soils.-Description:...
.
According to the infrageneric classification scheme proposed by German mycologist Hanns Kreisel
Hanns Kreisel
Hanns Kreisel is a German mycologist and professor emeritus.Kreisel was a professor at the University of Greifswald. His field is the classification of fungi, where he has studied this group of organisms not only in Germany but in almost all continents, as in Brazil, Seychelles, Vietnam, Cuba and...
in 1996, Phallus calongei belongs in the subgenus
Subgenus
In biology, a subgenus is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.In zoology, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the generic name and the specific epithet: e.g. the Tiger Cowry of the Indo-Pacific, Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, which...
Phallus, section Flavophallus of the genus Phallus. Other species in this section include P. flavocostatus, P. tenuis, P. formanosus, P. calichrous, P. multicolor, and P. cinnabarinus. A number of features distinguish P. calongei from these, including: an undeveloped white volva, a stipe tapered at both ends, a deeply pitted and reticulate cap surface with pinkish ridges, and no indusium (a lacy "skirt" hanging from the cap, present in some Phallus species).
Description
As a member of the genus Phallus, the shape of P. calongei mushrooms assume the general form of a phallusPhallus
A phallus is an erect penis, a penis-shaped object such as a dildo, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. Any object that symbolically resembles a penis may also be referred to as a phallus; however, such objects are more often referred to as being phallic...
(an erect human penis) with a single elongated hollow stipe topped by a bulbous 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...
-like structure at the apex. The fruit bodies of P. calongei start out appearing similar to whitish "eggs", with a membranous exoperidium
Peridium
The peridium is the protective layer that encloses a mass of spores in fungi. This outer covering is a distinctive feature of the Gasteromycetes.-Description:...
(outer tissue layer) and gelatinous, translucent endoperidium (inner tissue layer). The fully expanded fruit body consists of a single, thick, stalk with a ridged and pitted cap attached to the apex; the cap is covered with olive-green, slimy gleba. The fruit body can reach up to 24 cm (9.4 in) tall and 3 cm (1.2 in) thick. It is whitish and hollow, slightly tapered at both ends, and has a wall that consists of layers of perforated chambers. At the apex of the stalk is the "cap", which can be up to 7 cm (2.8 in) high and 4 cm (1.6 in) thick. It is bell-shaped to conical-truncate with a pitted surface. As the gleba
Gleba
Gleba is the fleshy spore-bearing inner mass of fungi such as the puffball or stinkhorn.The gleba is a solid mass of spores, generated within an enclosed area within the sporocarp. The continuous maturity of the sporogenous cells leave the spores behind as a powdery mass that can be easily blown away...
dissipates, the cap surface becomes strongly reticulated—forming a network of raised pinkish ridges. The tip of the cap is truncated, with a depressed and perforated surface. The gleba is olive-green, fetid, and deliquescent (melting away gradually). 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 ellipsoid, smooth, and 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...
(translucent), measuring 3.5–4.5 by 1.5–2.0 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 exoperidium of the "egg" remains at the base of the fruit body as a thin, membranous, undeveloped white volva
Volva (mycology)
The volva is a mycological term to describe a cup-like structure at the base of a mushroom that is a remnant of the universal veil. This macrofeature is important in wild mushroom identification due to it being an easily observed, taxonomically significant feature which frequently signifies a...
. The edibility
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...
of the mushroom has not been determined.
Similar species
The only other Phallus species known with a pinkish-colored cap is P. rubicundus; its conical cap has a surface that is wrinkled, not reticulate. Other similar species include P. hadrianiPhallus hadriani
Phallus hadriani, commonly known as the dune stinkhorn, is a species of fungus in the Phallaceae family. It is a widely distributed species, and is native to Asia, Europe, and North America. In Australia, it is probably an introduced species. The stalk of the fruit body reaches up to tall by ...
, which has a purple volva, P. macrosporus, which has a reddish volva, and P. formanosus, which has a pale pink stipe and volva.