''Morchella conica'' is an old

binomial name In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, altho ...

previously applied to species of

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 Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Morchellaceae The Morchellaceae are a family of ascomycete fungi in the order Pezizales. According to a standard reference work, the family has contained at least 49 species distributed among four genera. However, in 2012, five genera that produce ascoma tha ...

. It is one of three scientific names that had been commonly used to describe black morels, the others being '' M. angusticeps'' and '' M. elata''. It was first introduced by mycologist

Christian Hendrik Persoon Christiaan Hendrik Persoon (31 December 1761 – 16 November 1836) was a Cape Colony mycologist who is recognized as one of the founders of mycology, mycological Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy. Early life Persoon was born in Cape Colony at ...

in 1818, as a superfluous name for the old taxon ''Morchella continua''. According to Richard and colleagues, Fries’ sanctioning applies only at the subgeneric level and the name is

illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...

. Throughout the years, the name ''M. conica'' has been invariably applied to many different species by different authors, and

DNA analysis Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...

in 2014 revealed that morels identified as "''M. conica''" indeed belonged to '' Morchella deliciosa'', ''

Morchella purpurascens ''Morchella purpurascens'', the purple morel, is an ascomycete fungus in the family ''Morchellaceae''. It was first described as a variety of ''Morchella elata'' by Emile Boudier in 1897, based on a plate previously illustrated by Julius Vincen ...

'', ''

Morchella tridentina ''Morchella tridentina'' is a cosmopolitan species of ascomycete fungus in the family Morchellaceae. Commonly referred to as the mountain blond or western blond morel in North America, it produces conical, grey to buff ascocarp, fruit bodies tha ...

'', and ''

Morchella vulgaris ''Morchella vulgaris'' is a widespread fungus of the family Morchellaceae (Ascomycota). It was originally described in 1801 as a form of the common yellow morel (''Morchella esculenta'') by mycologist Christiaan Hendrik Persoon, but was later rec ...

''.

References

Morchellaceae Fungi of Europe Fungi of North America Edible fungi Fungus species {{Pezizomycetes-stub