''Fomes'' 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 perennial woody

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

Polyporaceae The Polyporaceae () are a family (biology), family of polypore, poroid fungi belonging to the Basidiomycota. The trama (mycology), flesh of their basidiocarp, fruit bodies varies from soft (as in the case of the dryad's saddle illustrated) to v ...

. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the

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 oth ...

. This often results in a zonate appearance of the upper surface, that is, marked by concentric bands of color. The name comes from

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 ...

''fomes'', meaning "

tinder Tinder is easily Combustibility and flammability, combustible material used to Firemaking, start a fire. Tinder is a finely divided, open material which will begin to glow under a shower of sparks. Air is gently wafted over the glowing tinder unt ...

", from the use of ''

Fomes fomentarius ''Fomes fomentarius'' (commonly known as the tinder fungus, false tinder fungus, hoof fungus, tinder conk, tinder polypore or ice man fungus) is a species of fungi, fungal plant pathogen found in Europe, Asia, Africa and North America. The spec ...

'', also known as the tinder fungus, in making tinder (see

amadou Amadou is a spongy material derived from ''Fomes fomentarius'' and similar fungi that grow on the bark of coniferous and angiosperm trees, and have the appearance of a horse's hoof (thus the name "hoof fungus"). It is also known as the "tinder fu ...

Taxonomy

''Fomes'' was first introduced by

Elias Magnus Fries Elias Magnus Fries (15 August 1794 – 8 February 1878) was a Swedish mycologist and botanist. He is sometimes called the Mycology, "Linnaeus of Mycology". In his works he described and assigned botanical names to hundreds of fungus and li ...

as a

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

of '' Polyporus'' in his 1836 work ''Genera Hymenomycetum''. He promoted it to generic status in 1849.

Description

''Fomes'' species have

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

, hoof-shaped fruit bodies that attach directly to their

substrate Substrate may refer to: Physical layers *Substrate (biology), the natural environment in which an organism lives, or the surface or medium on which an organism grows or is attached ** Substrate (aquatic environment), the earthy material that exi ...

without a stipe. The cap surface has a hard smooth crust that ranges in colour from gray to blackish. On the underside of the cap, the pore surface is pale brown with small pores, and brown tube layers. The tough and fibrous

context In semiotics, linguistics, sociology and anthropology, context refers to those objects or entities which surround a ''focal event'', in these disciplines typically a communicative event, of some kind. Context is "a frame that surrounds the event ...

is pale brown. The fruit body becomes stratified after multiple years of growth. ''Fomes'' has a trimitic

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 ...

l system, containing generative, skeletal, and binding hyphae. The generative hyphae have

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, while binding and skeletal hyphae have pale brownish

pigment A pigment is a powder used to add or alter color or change visual appearance. Pigments are completely or nearly solubility, insoluble and reactivity (chemistry), chemically unreactive in water or another medium; in contrast, dyes are colored sub ...

that appears when they are

mounted Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, Co ...

in a solution of

potassium hydroxide Potassium hydroxide is an inorganic compound with the formula K OH, and is commonly called caustic potash. Along with sodium hydroxide (NaOH), KOH is a prototypical strong base. It has many industrial and niche applications, most of which utili ...

. The cystidioles are fusoid, imbedded, or project somewhat. 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 ...

(spore-bearing cells) are club-shaped with a basal clamp, and have four

sterigmata In biology, a sterigma (: sterigmata) is a small supporting structure. It commonly refers to an extension of the basidium (the spore-bearing cells) consisting of a basal filamentous part and a slender projection which carries a spore at the tip ...

. The

spores In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plant ...

are cylindric, large,

hyaline A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from , and . Histopathology Hyaline cartilage is named after its glassy appearance on fresh gross pathology. On light microscopy of H&E stained slides, the extracellula ...

and smooth, and are non-reactive to

Melzer's reagent Melzer's reagent (also known as Melzer's iodine reagent, Melzer's solution or informally as Melzer's) is a chemical reagent used by mycologists to assist with the identification of fungi, and by phytopathologists for fungi that are plant pathogens ...

Species

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 ...

accepts 59 species of ''Fomes'': *''

Fomes abramsianus ''Fomes'' is a genus of perennial woody fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the hymenium. This often results in a z ...

'' (Murrill) Murrill (1915) *''

Fomes ajazii ''Fomes'' is a genus of perennial woody fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the hymenium. This often results in a z ...

'' S.M.Hussain (1952) *'' Fomes albescens'' (Lázaro Ibiza) Sacc. & Trotter (1925) *'' Fomes albogriseus'' Peck (1903) *'' Fomes albotextus'' Lloyd (1924) –

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

*'' Fomes angulus'' Lloyd (1913) *'' Fomes aratus'' Sacc. & D.Sacc. (1905) *''

Fomes arctostaphyli ''Fomes'' is a genus of perennial woody fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the hymenium. This often results in a z ...

'' Long (1917) *'' Fomes auriscalpioides'' Henn. (1904) *'' Fomes bomfimensis'' Henn. (1904) *'' Fomes borealis'' Lloyd (1915) *'' Fomes borneoensis'' (Lloyd) S.Ahmad (1956) *'' Fomes bossardii'' Lucien (1923) *'' Fomes chaquensis'' Iaconis & J.E.Wright (1953) *'' Fomes clelandii'' Lloyd (1915) *'' Fomes congoanus'' Bres. (1913) *'' Fomes crispus'' Lázaro Ibiza (1917) *'' Fomes extensus'' (Lév.) Cooke (1885 – Uganda) *'' Fomes fasciatus'' (Sw.) Cooke (1885) *'' Fomes ferrugineobrunneus'' Cout. (1925) *''

'' (L.) Fr. (1849) – widespread *'' Fomes fulvellus'' (Bres.) Sacc. (1891) *'' Fomes fulvus'' (Scop.) Gillet (1878) *'' Fomes goethartii'' Bres. (1910) *'' Fomes griseus'' Lázaro Ibiza (1916) *''

Fomes haeuslerianus ''Fomes'' is a genus of perennial woody fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the hymenium. This often results in a zo ...

'' Henn. (1896) *'' Fomes halconensis'' Bres. (1912) *'' Fomes hemitephrus'' (Berk.) Cooke (1885) – Australia Unidentified Fungus 8789

*'' Fomes idahoensis'' R.W.Br. (1940) *'' Fomes imitator'' Petch (1922) *'' Fomes javanicus'' Bres. (1912) *'' Fomes langloisii'' (Murrill) Sacc. & D.Sacc. (1905) *'' Fomes lazaroi'' Sacc. & Trotter (1925) *'' Fomes longinquus'' Lloyd (1925) *'' Fomes lukinsii'' N.Walters (1962) *'' Fomes meliae'' (Underw.) Murrill (1903) –

British Virgin Islands The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially the Virgin Islands, are a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean, to the east of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands and north-west ...

*'' Fomes minimus'' N.Walters (1962) –

Lord Howe Island Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland Port ...

*'' Fomes mirabilis'' C.B.Ussher (1911) *'' Fomes nigrescens'' Lloyd (1915) *'' Fomes nigriporus'' Lázaro Ibiza (1916) *''

Fomes nigrolaccatus ''Fomes'' is a genus of perennial woody fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the hymenium. This often results in a zo ...

'' (Cooke) Sacc. (1888) *'' Fomes niveus'' (Lázaro Ibiza) Sacc. & Trotter (1925) *'' Fomes noscius'' Corner (1932) *'' Fomes obesus'' (Pat.) Sacc. & Trotter (1912) *'' Fomes ostricolor'' Lloyd (1915) *'' Fomes pachyderma'' Bres. (1912) *'' Fomes perelegans'' Rick (1960) *'' Fomes pini-canadensis'' (Schwein.) Cooke (1885) *'' Fomes praerimosus'' (Murrill) Sacc. & D.Sacc. (1905) *'' Fomes pseudoconchatus'' Henn. (1908) *''

Fomes pseudosenex ''Fomes'' is a genus of perennial woody fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Species are typically hoof-shaped (ungulate). New growth each season is added to the margin, resulting in a downward extension of the hymenium. This often results in a zo ...

'' (Murrill) Sacc. & Trotter (1912) –

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

*'' Fomes pusilla'' Lloyd (1915) *'' Fomes rechingeri'' Bres. (1910) *'' Fomes silveirae'' Torrend (1909) *'' Fomes subamboinensis'' Henn. (1904) *'' Fomes subendothejus'' Bres. (1910) *'' Fomes subzonatus'' (Lázaro Ibiza) Sacc. & Trotter (1925) *'' Fomes unciatus'' Bres. (1922) *'' Fomes uncinatus'' Bres. (1922)

References

{{Authority control Polyporaceae Polyporales genera Taxa named by Elias Magnus Fries Taxa described in 1836