''Leucoagaricus'' 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 ...

mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing Sporocarp (fungi), fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or another food source. ''Toadstool'' generally refers to a poisonous mushroom. The standard for the n ...

-forming

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 Agaricaceae. As of March 2023 there are over 200 accepted species of ''Leucoagaricus'' with ongoing research into the genus adding several more each year.' '' Leucocoprinus'' is a similar genus and considered by some sources to be indistinct from ''Leucoagaricus'' based on genetic data that demonstrates they are

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

. Species are separated into these genera based on macroscopic features such as cap striations in ''Leucocoprinus'' or the more persistent

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 (mushrooms) of ''Leucoagaricus'' as well as microscopic features such as the lack of a germ pore in ''Leucoagaricus'' species. As a result of the similarities and disagreement on taxonomy, many of the species within these genera have formerly been classified in the other and may still be known by previous classifications. For instance the species '' Leucoagaricus gongylophorus'' is cultivated by fungus-growing ants but was formerly known as ''Leucocoprinus gongylophorus'' whilst other species cultivated by the lesser attine ants are still classified as undescribed ''Leucocoprinus'' species.

Taxonomy

This group of mushrooms was first defined as a subgenus of '' Leucocoprinus'' by Marcel Locquin in 1945, and it was then elevated to the status of genus by

Rolf Singer Rolf Singer (June 23, 1906 – January 18, 1994) was a German mycologist and Taxonomy (biology), taxonomist of gilled mushrooms (agarics). He wrote the book "The Agaricales in Modern Taxonomy (biology), Taxonomy". He fled to various countries d ...

in the journal '' Sydowia'' in 1948. The group was characterized as belonging to family Agaricaceae with white, dirty cream or pink spores which are generally small (up to 10 μm) but much bigger in one species, with a germ pore, with a pseudo-

amyloid Amyloids are aggregates of proteins characterised by a fibrillar morphology of typically 7–13 nm in diameter, a β-sheet secondary structure (known as cross-β) and ability to be stained by particular dyes, such as Congo red. In the human ...

multilayered membrane, simple or ornamented, which is metachromatic in cresyl blue. The

hypha 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 ...

e in the sporocarp are without clamp connections. There is always a ring which is initially fixed (but later may be movable). The type species is ''Leucoagaricus barssii'' (Zeller) Vellinga, which was formerly called ''L. macrorhizus''. The genus ''Sericeomyces'' was created in 1978 by the Belgian mycologist Paul Heinemann to accommodate species with a silky covering to the cap with 24 species being placed within this genus having been reclassified from '' Lepiota.'' However this classification has since been rejected as phylogenetic data demonstrated they were not distinct from ''Leucoagaricus.'' The genus is further divided based on its morphology with the section classifications: * ''Leucoagaricus'' section ''Annulati'' * ''Leucoagaricus'' section ''Leucoagaricus'' * ''Leucoagaricus'' section ''Piloselli'' * ''Leucoagaricus'' section ''Rubrotincti'' * ''Leucoagaricus'' section ''Sculpturati'' * ''Leucoagaricus'' section ''Sphaerocystophori'' As of 2023, all Leucoagaricus species have been moved to Leucocoprinus, with the Leucoagaricus genus now being deprecated.

Species

Select species include: *'' Leucoagaricus americanus'' *'' Leucoagaricus badhamii'' *'' Leucoagaricus barssii'' *'' Leucoagaricus erythrophaeus'' *'' Leucoagaricus gaillardii'' *'' Leucoagaricus gongylophorus'' *'' Leucoagaricus leucothites'' *'' Leucoagaricus meleagris'' *'' Leucoagaricus moseri'' *'' Leucoagaricus nympharum'' *'' Leucoagaricus rubrotinctus'' *'' Leucoagaricus sericifer'' *'' Leucoagaricus gujratensis'' *'' Leucoagaricus thallensis''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1297274 Agaricales genera Taxa named by Rolf Singer

Taxonomy

Species

See also

References