''Marasmius'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is ...

-forming

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

in the family

Marasmiaceae The Marasmiaceae are a family of basidiomycete fungi which have white spores. They mostly have tough stems and the capability of shrivelling up during a dry period and later recovering. The widely consumed edible fungus '' Lentinula edodes'', ...

. It contains about 500

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

agarics An agaric () is a type of fungus fruiting body characterized by the presence of a pileus (cap) that is clearly differentiated from the stipe (stalk), with lamellae (gills) on the underside of the pileus. In the UK, agarics are called "mushroom ...

, of which a few, such as '' Marasmius oreades'', are edible. However, most members of this genus are small, unimpressive brown mushrooms. Their humble appearance contributes to their not being readily distinguishable to non-specialists, and they are therefore seldom collected by mushroom hunters. Several of the species are known to grow in the characteristic

fairy ring A fairy ring, also known as fairy circle, elf circle, elf ring or pixie ring, is a naturally occurring ring or arc of mushrooms. They are found mainly in forested areas, but also appear in grasslands or rangelands. Fairy rings are detectable by ...

pattern.

The author of the genus was Elias Magnus Fries, who in 1838 classified white-spored agarics having a tough central stipe in this taxon if they were

marcescent Marcescence is the withering and persistence of plant organs that normally are shed, and is a term most commonly applied to plant leaves. The underlying physiological mechanism is that trees transfer water and sap from the roots to the leaves ...

, i.e. they could dry out but later revive when moistened. For Fries, marcescence — by contrast with the " putrescent" (decomposing) nature of most mushrooms — was an important character for

classification Classification is a process related to categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated and understood. Classification is the grouping of related facts into classes. It may also refer to: Business, organizat ...

, which he used to separate this group from genus '' Collybia'' (which has now been split into many newer genera). The name ''Marasmius'' itself comes from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

word ''marasmos'', meaning "drying out". Modern

mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to humans, including as a source for tinder, traditional medicine, food, and entheogens, as w ...

s no longer consider the marcescence/putrescence distinction a reliable criterion for

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

, but Fries's definition of the genus is still roughly applicable.

Species

Below is a list of more prominent species (for a complete list see List of ''Marasmius'' species). Note that some well-known former members of ''Marasmius,'' such as '' M. alliaceus'', have been moved into the new genus ''

Mycetinis ''Mycetinis'' is a genus of fungus in the Omphalotaceae family, containing about eight species formerly classified in ''Marasmius''. General This group of mushrooms was long known as a section (''Alliacei'') within the more familiar genus ''Maras ...

''; a few others have been reclassified as '' Rhizomarasmius'' or '' Gloiocephala''. Former ''M. androsaceus'' is now considered to belong to genus '' Gymnopus''. *'' M. amazonicus'' *'' M. anomalus'' *'' M. atrocastaneus'' *'' M. auklandicus'' *'' M. aurantiobasalis'' *'' M. bambusinus'' *'' M. bellus'' *'' M. bulliardii'' *'' M. buxi'' - box parachute *'' M. caperatus'' *'' M. capillaris'' *'' M. caricis'' *'' M. chordalis'' *'' M. cladophyllus'' *'' M. cohaerens'' *'' M. collinus'' *'' M. corbariensis'' *'' M. crinis-equi'' *'' M. croceus'' *'' M. curranii'' *'' M. curreyi'' *'' M. cylindraceocampanulatus'' *'' M. delicatus'' *'' M. delectans'' *'' M. elegans'' - velvet parachute *'' M. epiphylloides'' *'' M. epiphyllus'' - leaf parachute *'' M. exocarpi'' *'' M. exustoides'' *'' M. favrei'' *'' M. fishii'' *'' M. fulvoferrugineus'' *'' M. funalis'' *'' M. galbinus'' *'' M. gelatinosipes'' *'' M. graminum'' *'' M. haematocephalus'' *'' M. hudsonii'' - holly parachute *'' M. indopurpureostriatus'' *'' M. insititius'' *'' M. kanukaneus'' *'' M. koae'' *'' M. kroumirensis'' *'' M. limosus'' *'' M. masonii'' *'' M. meridionalis'' *'' M. micraster'' *'' M. midnapurensis'' *'' M. minutus'' *'' M. nigripes'' *'' M. oreades'' - fairy ring mushroom *'' M. otagensis'' *'' M. pallenticeps'' *'' M. palmivorus'' *'' M. perforans'' *'' M. perpusillus'' *'' M. phalaricola'' *'' M. podocarpicola'' *'' M. prasiosmus'' *'' M. pulcherripes'' *'' M. pyrrhocephalus'' *'' M. pusillissimus'' *'' M. pusio'' *'' M. quercophilus'' *'' M. resinosus'' *'' M. rhombisporus'' *'' M. rhopalostylidis'' *'' M. rimuphilus'' *'' M. rosulatus'' *'' M. rotula'' - collared parachute or pinwheel mushroom *'' M. sacchari'' *'' M. saccharinus'' *'' M. sasicola'' *'' M. semiustus'' *'' M. setosus'' *'' M. siccus'' *'' M. spaniophyllus'' *'' M. splachnoides'' *'' M. subsupinus'' *'' M. stenophyllus'' *'' M. strictipes'' (edible) *'' M. sullivantii'' *'' M. tageticolor'' *'' M. tenuiparietalis'' *'' M. tenuissimus'' *'' M. tinctorius'' *'' M. torquescens'' *'' M. unilamellatus'' *'' M. wettsteinii'' *'' M. wynneae'' - pearly parachute

References

External links

*
Genus ''Marasmius''
at Mushroom Expert.com {{Taxonbar, from=Q1520016 Agaricales genera Taxa named by Elias Magnus Fries Bioluminescent fungi

Species

See also

References

External links