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''Clavaria'' is a
genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...
in the family Clavariaceae. Species of ''Clavaria'' produce
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 no ...
s (fruit bodies) that are either cylindrical to club-shaped or branched and coral-like. They are often grouped with similar-looking species from other genera, when they are collectively known as the clavarioid fungi. All ''Clavaria'' species are terrestrial and most (if not all) are believed to be
saprotrophic Saprotrophic nutrition or lysotrophic nutrition is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or waste) organic matter. It occurs in saprotrophs, and is most often associated with fungi ...
(decomposing dead plant material). In Europe, they are typical of old, mossy, unimproved grassland. In North America and elsewhere, they are more commonly found in woodlands.


History

''Clavaria'' (the name is derived from the
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
"clava", a club) was first introduced as a genus name by Vaillant (1727), later accepted by Micheli (1729), and was one of the original genera used by
Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
in his ''
Species Plantarum ' (Latin for "The Species of Plants") is a book by Carl Linnaeus, originally published in 1753, which lists every species of plant known at the time, classified into genus, genera. It is the first work to consistently apply binomial nomenclature ...
'' of 1753. It contained all species of fungi with erect, club-shaped or branched (coral-like) fruit bodies, including many that are now referred to the
Ascomycota Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The def ...
. Subsequent authors described over 1200 species in the genus. The name ''Clavaria'' was also used for a group of
red algae Red algae, or Rhodophyta (, ; ), make up one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae. The Rhodophyta comprises one of the largest Phylum, phyla of algae, containing over 7,000 recognized species within over 900 Genus, genera amidst ongoing taxon ...
in the
Gelidiaceae The Gelidiaceae is a small family (biology), family of red algae containing eight genera. Many species of this algae are used to make agar. Uses Agar can be derived from many types of red seaweeds, including those from families such as ''Gelidia ...
family of the
Rhodophyta Red algae, or Rhodophyta (, ; ), make up one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae. The Rhodophyta comprises one of the largest phyla of algae, containing over 7,000 recognized species within over 900 genera amidst ongoing taxonomic revisions. ...
by Stackhouse in 1816. Because ''Clavaria'' Stackh. was also validly published, Donk in 1949 proposed that ''Clavaria'' Stackh. be rejected as a
homonym In linguistics, homonyms are words which are either; '' homographs''—words that mean different things, but have the same spelling (regardless of pronunciation), or '' homophones''—words that mean different things, but have the same pronunciat ...
of ''Clavaria'' Fries and that the latter name be retained as a ''
nomen conservandum Nomen may refer to: *Nomen gentilicium, the middle part of Ancient Roman names ** ''Nomen est omen'', a Latin quote about nominative determinism *Nomen (ancient Egypt), the personal name of Ancient Egyptian pharaohs * Jaume Nomen (born 1960), Cata ...
'' (conserved name). This proposal was moved by Doty (1948), recommended for adoption by Rogers (1949), and approved by the Special Committee for Fungi. With increasing use of the microscope in the late nineteenth century, most of the ascomycetous members of the genus were recognized as distinct and moved to other genera. ''Clavaria'' was, however, still widely used for the majority of the basidiomycetous species until Corner published his world
monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...
of the clavarioid fungi in 1950, introducing the modern concept of the genus. Corner restricted ''Clavaria'' to those species with fruit bodies having inflated, unclamped, context
hyphae A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one o ...
(a character that makes ''Clavaria'' fruit bodies distinctly brittle). Species with clamped hyphae were placed in the segregate genera ''
Clavulinopsis ''Clavulinopsis'' is a genus of coral fungi in the family Clavariaceae. The genus, first described scientifically by Casper van Overeem in 1923, has a widespread distribution. The name means "having the appearance of ''Clavulina''". Species , ...
'' and ''
Ramariopsis ''Ramariopsis'' is a genus of coral fungi in the family Clavariaceae. The genus has a collectively widespread distribution and contains about 40 species. The name means 'having the appearance of '' Ramaria. Taxonomy ''Ramariopsis'' was origin ...
''. This concept was modified in 1978 by
Petersen Petersen is a common Danish patronymic surname, meaning ''"son of Peter"''. There are other spellings. Petersen may refer to: People In arts and entertainment * Adolf Dahm-Petersen, Norwegian voice specialist * Anja Petersen, German operatic ...
, who considered ''Clavulinopsis'' an artificial genus, moving the majority of species to ''Ramariopsis'' but a minority back into ''Clavaria''.


Phylogeny

Recent
phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the evolutionary history of life using observable characteristics of organisms (or genes), which is known as phylogenetic inference. It infers the relationship among organisms based on empirical dat ...
research based on
DNA sequencing DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine. The ...
suggests that all three genera are closely related, but does not unambiguously support either Corner's or Petersen's precise characterization of ''Clavaria''. Too few species have yet been sequenced, however, for ''Clavaria'' to be redefined.


Description

Fruit bodies are simple (cylindrical to club-shaped) or more rarely branched, sometimes with a distinct stipe (stem). Several of the species with simple fruit bodies form them in dense clusters. The fruit bodies themselves are smooth to grooved and typically brittle. Depending on species, they vary in colour from white or cream to yellow, pink, violet, brown, or black. The hyphal system of ''Clavaria'' species is always
monomitic A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one or ...
. The context
hyphae A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one o ...
are inflated, thin-walled, and lack
clamp connection A clamp connection is a hook-like structure formed by growing hyphal cells of certain fungi. It is a characteristic feature of basidiomycete fungi. It is created to ensure that each cell, or segment of hypha separated by septa (cross walls), rece ...
s (though Petersen's amended concept of the genus includes some species with clamps). The
basidia A basidium (: basidia) is a microscopic spore-producing structure found on the hymenophore of reproductive bodies of basidiomycete fungi. The presence of basidia is one of the main characteristic features of the group. These bodies are also ...
are two- to four-spored, in some species with an open, loop-like clamp connection at the base. Spores are smooth or spiny.
Spore print 300px, Making a spore print of the mushroom ''Volvariella volvacea'' shown in composite: (photo lower half) mushroom cap laid on white and dark paper; (photo upper half) cap removed after 24 hours showing warm orange ("tussock") color spore print. ...
s are white.


Habitat and distribution

Most ''Clavaria'' species are thought to be saprotrophic, decomposing leaf litter and other organic materials on the woodland floor. In Europe, species are more frequently found in old, unimproved grasslands (i.e., not used agriculturally) where they are presumed to be decomposers of dead grass and moss. At least one species ('' Clavaria argillacea'') is, however, typical of
heathland A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and is characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a coole ...
and is a possible
mycorrhizal A mycorrhiza (; , mycorrhiza, or mycorrhizas) is a symbiotic association between a fungus and a plant. The term mycorrhiza refers to the role of the fungus in the plant's rhizosphere, the plant root system and its surroundings. Mycorrhizae play ...
associate of heather. Species of ''Clavaria'' occur in suitable habitats throughout the temperate regions and the tropics. Some 15 species are known from Europe; according to one 2008 estimate, 28 species are recognized worldwide. Petersen described 18 new species from New Zealand in a 1988
monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...
. ,
Index Fungorum ''Index Fungorum'' is an international project to index all formal names (scientific names) in the fungus kingdom. As of 2015, the project is based at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, one of three partners along with Landcare Research and th ...
lists 175 valid species in ''Clavaria''.


Species


See also

*
List of Agaricales genera This is a list of fungal genus, genera in the order (biology), order Agaricales. The list follows Kalichman, Kirk & Matheny (2020), with more recent additions and amendments, as noted. The number of species in each family is taken from Catalogue of ...


References

{{Authority control Clavariaceae Agaricales genera