The Cantharellales are an

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

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

class Class, Classes, or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used d ...

Agaricomycetes The Agaricomycetes are a class of fungi in the division Basidiomycota. The taxon is roughly identical to that defined for the Homobasidiomycetes (alternatively called holobasidiomycetes) by Hibbett & Thorn, with the inclusion of Auriculariales ...

. The order includes not only the chanterelles (

Cantharellaceae The Cantharellaceae are a family of fungi in the order Cantharellales. The family contains the chanterelles and related species, a group of fungi that superficially resemble agarics (gilled mushrooms) but have smooth, wrinkled, or gill-like hy ...

), but also some of the tooth fungi (

Hydnaceae The Hydnaceae are a family of fungi in the order Cantharellales. Originally the family encompassed all species of fungi that produced basidiocarps (fruit bodies) having a hymenium (spore-bearing surface) consisting of slender, downward-hanging ta ...

), clavarioid fungi ( Aphelariaceae and

Clavulinaceae The Clavulinaceae are a family (biology), family of fungi in the order (biology), order Cantharellales. The family is not well defined, but currently comprises species of clavarioid fungi, clavarioid (club and coral) fungi as well as some cortici ...

), and corticioid fungi ( Botryobasidiaceae). Species within the order are variously

ectomycorrhizal An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycobion ...

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 ...

, associated with

orchids Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Earth ...

, or facultative plant pathogens. Those of economic importance include edible and commercially collected ''

Cantharellus ''Cantharellus'' is a genus of mushrooms, commonly known as chanterelles (), a name which can also refer to the type species, '' Cantharellus cibarius''. They are mycorrhizal fungi, meaning they form symbiotic associations with plants. Ch ...

'', '' Craterellus'', and ''

Hydnum ''Hydnum'' is a genus of fungi in the family Hydnaceae. They are notable for their unusual spore-bearing structures of teeth rather than Lamella (mycology), gills. The best known are the Edible mushroom, edible species ''Hydnum repandum'' and ''H ...

'' species as well as crop pathogens in the genera '' Ceratobasidium'' and '' Thanatephorus''/'' Rhizoctonia''.

Taxonomy

The order was originally proposed in 1926 by German

mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their taxonomy, genetics, biochemical properties, and use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, food, traditional medicine, as well as entheogens, poison, and ...

Ernst Albert Gäumann to accommodate species within the

phylum In biology, a phylum (; : phyla) is a level of classification, or taxonomic rank, that is below Kingdom (biology), kingdom and above Class (biology), class. Traditionally, in botany the term division (taxonomy), division has been used instead ...

Basidiomycota Basidiomycota () is one of two large divisions that, together with the Ascomycota, constitute the subkingdom Dikarya (often referred to as the "higher fungi") within the kingdom Fungi. Members are known as basidiomycetes. More specifically, Basi ...

having "stichic"

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 ...

(basidia with nuclear spindles arranged longitudinally). On this basis, he included three families within the Cantharellales: the

(including the

), the

, and the Exobasidiaceae. The last group are now placed within the Exobasidiales. By 1995, the order had been amended (based on micromorphological research) to include not only the

, but also the Aphelariaceae, Clavariaceae,

Clavariadelphaceae The Clavariadelphaceae are a family of fungi belonging in what is classically known as the Gomphales order, or cladistically as the gomphoid-phalloid clade. First described by British botanist E.J.H. Corner in 1970, the family has 2 genera and ...

, Craterellaceae,

, Physalacriaceae, Pterulaceae, Scutigeraceae, Sparassidaceae, and Typhulaceae.

Current status

Molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, ...

research, based on

cladistic Cladistics ( ; from Ancient Greek 'branch') is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups ("clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is ...

analysis of

DNA sequences A nucleic acid sequence is a succession of bases within the nucleotides forming alleles within a DNA (using GACT) or RNA (GACU) molecule. This succession is denoted by a series of a set of five different letters that indicate the order of the ...

, has redefined the Cantharellales. As well as the Cantharellaceae ( chanterelles and their allies, inclusive of the Craterellaceae), the order currently comprises fungi with morphologically diverse sporocarps (fruit bodies) within the Aphelariaceae ( clavarioid fungi), Botryobasidiaceae ( corticioid fungi), Ceratobasidiaceae ( heterobasidiomycetes), Clavulinaceae (clavarioid fungi), Hydnaceae ( tooth fungi), and

Tulasnellaceae The Tulasnellaceae are a family of fungi in the order Cantharellales. The family comprises mainly effused (patch-forming) fungi formerly referred to the " jelly fungi" or heterobasidiomycetes. Species are wood- or litter-rotting saprotrophs, b ...

(heterobasidiomycetes). The Clavariaceae, Physalacriaceae, Pterulaceae, and Typhulaceae, previously included within the order, are now placed within the

Agaricales The Agaricales are an order (biology), order of fungi in the division (mycology), division Basidiomycota. As originally conceived, the order contained all the agarics (gilled mushrooms), but subsequent research has shown that not all agarics are ...

; the Clavariadelphaceae are now in the

Gomphales The Gomphales are an order of basidiomycete fungi. Some or all families belonging to Gomphales have been sometimes included in the order Phallales (and ''vice versa'' - they are also sometimes treated as synonyms), the now-obsolete Ramariacea ...

; the Sparassidaceae in the

Polyporales The Polyporales are an order (biology), order of about 1,800 species of fungi in the division (mycology), division Basidiomycota. The order includes some (but not all) polypores as well as many corticioid fungi and a few agarics (mainly in the ge ...

. The Scutigeraceae have been replaced by the Albatrellaceae within the

Russulales The Russulales are an order of the Agaricomycetes, (which include the agaric genera '' Russula'' and ''Lactarius'' and their polyporoid and corticioid relatives). According to the ''Dictionary of the Fungi'' (10th edition, 2008), the order con ...

. According to a 2008 estimate, the order contains 7

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

, 38

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

, and 544

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

Habitat and distribution

Most fungi within the order are

, forming mutually beneficial associations with certain trees, shrubs, and other vascular plants. Species in the Botryobasidiaceae are believed to be saprotrophs of fallen wood and leaf litter. Species in the Ceratobasidiaceae are also saprotrophs, but some are capable of becoming facultative plant pathogens. Species in the Tulasnellaceae are saprotrophic, but are also associated with

orchid mycorrhiza Orchid mycorrhizae are endomycorrhizal fungi which develop symbiotic relationships with the roots and seeds of plants of the family Orchidaceae. Nearly all orchids are myco-heterotrophic at some point in their life cycle. Orchid mycorrhizae are ...

, as are some species in the Ceratobasidiaceae. Distribution is

cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Internationalism * World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship * Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community * Cosmopolitan ...

Economic importance

Sporocarps (fruit bodies) of chanterelles and some ''

'' species, particularly '' Hydnum repandum'', are edible and widely collected on a commercial scale. They are marketed fresh or processed and traded internationally. Several species in the Ceratobasidiaceae, notably ''

Rhizoctonia solani ''Rhizoctonia solani'' is a species of fungus in the order Cantharellales. Basidiocarps (fruit bodies) are thin, effused, and web-like, but the fungus is more typically encountered in its anamorphic state, as hyphae and sclerotia. The name ' ...

'', cause significant diseases of

cereals A cereal is a grass cultivated for its edible grain. Cereals are the world's largest crops, and are therefore staple foods. They include rice, wheat, rye, oats, barley, millet, and maize (Corn). Edible grains from other plant families, suc ...

and other commercial crops, as well as

turf grass Sod is the upper layer of turf that is harvested for transplanting. Turf consists of a variable thickness of a soil medium that supports a community of turfgrasses. In British English, British and Australian English, sod is more commonly kn ...

Genera ''incertae sedis''

Some genera of the Cantharellales have not been assigned to any family, i.e., they are ''

incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...

'' with respect to familial placement: * '' Bryoclavula'' – 2 spp. * '' Bulbilla'' – 1 sp. * '' Minimedusa'' – 3 spp. * '' Odontiochaete'' – 1 sp. * '' Radulochaete'' – 2 spp. * '' Schildia'' – 1 sp. File:Aphelaria 82539.jpg, File:Botryobasidium.vagum.-.lindsey.jpg, File:Totentrompeten Herbsttrompeten.jpg, File:Clavulina coralloides - Lindsey.jpg, File:Hedgehog fungi.jpg, File:Tulasnella.violea.-.lindsey.jpg,

References

{{Authority control Basidiomycota orders Lichen orders Taxa described in 1926