''Morchella dunensis'', the morel of the dunes, is a

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), ...

fungus 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 ''

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 ...

'' (

Ascomycota Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The def ...

). It was first described as a

form Form is the shape, visual appearance, or configuration of an object. In a wider sense, the form is the way something happens. Form may also refer to: *Form (document), a document (printed or electronic) with spaces in which to write or enter dat ...

of ''

Morchella esculenta ''Morchella esculenta'' (commonly known as common morel, morel, yellow morel, true morel, morel mushroom, and sponge morel) is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae of the Ascomycota. It is one of the most readily recognized of all th ...

'' by Castañera and colleagues in 1996, but was later recombined as a distinct species by Clowez.Clowez P. (1997). ''Morchella dunensis'' (Boud.) Clowez (stat. et comb. nov. ad int.). Une bonne espèce pour un mystère nomenclatural. Documents Mycologiques 26(104):13–20. In a 2014 study by Richard and colleagues, the authors concluded that the taxon was conspecific to ''

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 ...

'', due to its close phylogenetic proximity to the latter. However, following increased

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, ...

sampling and the testing of an isoparatype collection by Loizides and colleagues in 2016, it was revealed that ''M. dunensis'' is indeed very closely related to, but

phylogenetically 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 data ...

distinct from ''M. vulgaris''. This study also showed that the taxon ''

Morchella andalusiae ''Morchella'', the true morels, is a genus of edible sac fungi closely related to anatomically simpler cup fungi in the order Pezizales ( division Ascomycota). These distinctive fungi have a honeycomb appearance due to the network of ridges wi ...

'' is phylogenetically identical and therefore a later synonym of ''M. dunensis''. ''Morchella dunensis'' is notable for its xerophilic,

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

ecology and distribution, often found on

coastal dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

and bare, well-drained soil.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3323805 Fungi described in 1996 Fungi of Europe dunensis Fungus species