''Gymnopilus'' 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 gilled

mushrooms A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing 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 name "mushroom" is ...

within the

fungal A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one of the tradit ...

family

Hymenogastraceae The Hymenogastraceae is a family of fungi in the order Agaricales with both agaric and false-truffle shaped fruitbodies. Formerly, prior to molecular analyses, the family was restricted to the false-truffle genera. The mushroom genus '' Psilo ...

containing over 200 rusty-orange spored mushroom species.

Description

The

fruit body The sporocarp (also known as fruiting body, fruit body or fruitbody) of fungi is a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures, such as basidia or asci, are borne. The fruitbody is part of the sexual phase of a fungal life cyc ...

is typically reddish brown to rusty orange to yellow, medium to large, often with a well-developed

veil A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the human head, head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has be ...

Similar genera

Members of ''

Pholiota ''Pholiota'' is a genus of small to medium-sized, fleshy mushrooms in the family Strophariaceae. They are saprobes that typically live on wood. The genus has a widespread distribution, especially in temperate regions, and contains about 150 spe ...

'' and ''

Cortinarius ''Cortinarius'' is a globally distributed genus of fungus in the family Cortinariaceae. Its members are commonly known by the names cortinar and webcap. It is suspected to be the largest genus of agarics, containing over 2,000 widespread species ...

'' are easy to confuse with ''Gymnopilus''. ''Pholiota'' can be distinguished by its viscid

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

and duller (brown to cinnamon brown)

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 ...

, and ''Cortinarius'' grows on the ground. Beginners can confuse ''Gymnopilus'' with ''

Galerina ''Galerina'' is a genus of small brown-spore saprobic mushroom-bearing fungi, with over 300 species found throughout the world from the far north to remote Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean. The genus is most noted for some extremely poison ...

'', which contains deadly

poisonous A poison is any chemical substance that is harmful or lethal to living organisms. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figurati ...

species.

Taxonomy

''Gymnopilus'' was formerly divided among ''

'' and the defunct genus ''Flammula''. The genus has over 200 species worldwide. Gymnopilus_luteofolius_spores_1000x

Psychoactive species

Fourteen members of ''Gymnopilus'' contain

psilocybin Psilocybin, also known as 4-phosphoryloxy-''N'',''N''-dimethyltryptamine (4-PO-DMT), is a natural product, naturally occurring tryptamine alkaloid and Investigational New Drug, investigational drug found in more than List of psilocybin mushroom ...

, although their bitter taste often deters recreational users. These species include '' G. aeruginosus'', '' G. braendlei'', '' G. cyanopalmicola'', '' G. dilepis'','' G. intermedius'', '' G. junonius'', '' G. luteofolius'', '' G. luteoviridis'', '' G. luteus'', '' G. purpuratus'', '' G. subearlei'', '' G. subpurpuratus'', '' G. validipes'' and '' G. viridans''. Subspecies of ''G. junonius'' from

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

are reported to contain psilocybin, while some western North American members do not. Several species of ''Gymnopilus'' contain bis-noryangonin -hydroxy-6-(4-hydrostyryl)-2-pyroneand hispidine -hydroxy-6-(3,4-dihydroxystyryl)-2-pyrone which are closely related to the alpha-pyrones found in

kava Kava or kava kava (''Piper methysticum'': Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Ancient Greek, Greek 'intoxicating') is a plant in the Piperaceae, pepper family, native to the Pacific Islands. The name ''kava'' is from Tongan language, Tongan and Marqu ...

Phylogeny

A 2003

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 ...

study identified five well-supported

clades In biology, a clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach to taxonomy ...

within ''Gymnopilus'': # the spectabilis-imperialis group # nevadensis-penetrans group # a clade formed by ''G. underwoodii'', ''G. validipes'' and ''G.'' cf. ''flavidellus'' # aeruginosus-luteofolius group # lepidotus-subearlei group Although the genus ''Gymnopilus'' was found to be

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 ...

, the phylogenetically related groups do not support the traditional infrageneric classifications based on morphology.

Etymology

The name means ''naked pileus''.

Habitat

Most members of ''Gymnopilus'' grow on wood but at times may appear terrestrial if the wood is buried or decomposed.

References

*C.J. Alexopolous, Charles W. Mims, M. Blackwell et al., ''Introductory Mycology, 4th ed.'' (John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken NJ, 2004) * Hesler, L. R. (1969). North American species of ''Gymnopilus''. New York: Hafner. 117 pp. {{Authority control Agaricales genera