''Pseudocolus'' 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 ...

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

stinkhorn Phallaceae is a family of fungi, commonly known as stinkhorns, within the order Phallales. Stinkhorns have a worldwide distribution, but are especially prevalent in tropical regions. They are known for their foul-smelling, sticky spore masses, ...

family. The

fruit bodies 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 c ...

have three or four simple arms that are initially joined at the tip, but often break apart. The tips of the arms are covered with a slimy, foul-smelling

gleba Gleba (, from Latin ''glaeba, glēba'', "lump") is the fleshy spore-bearing inner mass of certain fungi such as the puffball or stinkhorn. The gleba is a solid mass of spores, generated within an enclosed area within the sporocarp. The conti ...

, which attracts insects that help disperse the

spore In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual 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 plants, algae, ...

s. The genus contains three species: the

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * Ty ...

Pseudocolus fusiformis ''Pseudocolus fusiformis'' is a stinkhorn mushroom in the Phallaceae, a family well known for a remarkable range of fruit body types. It is the most widely distributed member of the genus ''Pseudocolus'' and has been found in the United States ...

'', '' P. garciae'', similar in appearance to the type but with a pinkish to red, rather than orange color, and '' P. grandis'', found in India.

Taxonomy

The first appearance of the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...

, ''

'', in the literature was in 1890, under the name ''Colus fusiformis'', when Eduard Fischer wrote a

description Description is the pattern of narrative development that aims to make vivid a place, object, character, or group. Description is one of four rhetorical modes (also known as ''modes of discourse''), along with exposition, argumentation, and na ...

based on a painting he found in the

Paris Museum of Natural History The French National Museum of Natural History, known in French language, French as the ' (abbreviation MNHN), is the national natural history museum of France and a ' of higher education part of Sorbonne University (alliance), Sorbonne Universities ...

. In his 1944 monograph on the

Gasteromycetes The gasteroid fungi are a group of fungi in the Basidiomycota. Species were formerly placed in the obsolete class Gasteromycetes Fr. (literally "stomach fungi"), or the equally obsolete order Gasteromycetales Rea, because they produce spores ins ...

of Australia and New Zealand, Gordon Herriot Cunningham considered this naming to be a ''

nomen nudum In taxonomy, a ''nomen nudum'' ('naked name'; plural ''nomina nuda'') is a designation which looks exactly like a scientific name of an organism, and may have originally been intended to be one, but it has not been published with an adequate des ...

''—not published with an adequate description. However, it was

valid Validity or Valid may refer to: Science/mathematics/statistics: * Validity (logic), a property of a logical argument * Scientific: ** Internal validity, the validity of causal inferences within scientific studies, usually based on experiments ** ...

under the rules of the

International Code of Botanical Nomenclature The ''International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants'' (ICN) is the set of rules and recommendations dealing with the formal botanical names that are given to plants, fungi and a few other groups of organisms, all those "trad ...

. In 1899 Penzig described the species ''Colus javanicus'' based on a single specimen found on Java, and a year later Fischer amended the name of his original ''Colus fusiformis'' to ''Colus javanicus'', as he was not satisfied with the quality of his original description. Despite his doubts on the validity of his description, his original naming is both legitimate and has priority over ''C. javanicus''. In 1907,

Curtis Gates Lloyd Curtis Gates Lloyd (July 17, 1859 – November 11, 1926) was an American mycologist known for both his research on the gasteroid and polypore fungi, as well as his controversial views on naming conventions in taxonomy. He had a herbarium with a ...

described the new genus ''Pseudocolus'', and reduced several species to synonyms of ''Pseudocolus fusiformis''.

Description

The fruit body consists of a flaring, short stipe surmounted by unbranched columns that bear the gleba and are normally united at the apex, occasionally becoming free. The tissue of the receptacle has a tubular structure.

Species

Several species described as ''Pseudocolus'' have been reduced to synonymy with ''P. fusiformis'', while others are poorly known and have been seldom reported in the literature since their original descriptions. *''

Pseudocolus archeri ''Clathrus archeri'' (synonyms ''Lysurus archeri'', ''Anthurus archeri'', ''Pseudocolus archeri''), commonly known as octopus stinkhorn or devil's fingers, is a fungus which has a global distribution. Using rDNA, Geastrales, Gauteriales and Pha ...

'' (Berk.) Lloyd (1913) :Originally described in 1860 by

Miles Joseph Berkeley Miles Joseph Berkeley (1 April 1803 – 30 July 1889) was an English cryptogamist and clergyman, and one of the founders of the science of plant pathology. Life Berkeley was born at Biggin Hall, Benefield, Northamptonshire, and educated a ...

as ''Lysurus archeri '', this name is one of many synonyms now lumped under ''

Clathrus archeri ''Clathrus archeri'' (synonyms ''Lysurus archeri'', ''Anthurus archeri'', ''Pseudocolus archeri''), commonly known as octopus stinkhorn or devil's fingers, is a fungus which has a global distribution. Using rDNA, Geastrales, Gauteriales and Pha ...

'' (Berk.) Dring (1980) *''

'' (E.Fisch.) Lloyd (1909) :Originally ''Colus fusiformis'' E.Fisch. *''

Pseudocolus garciae ''Pseudocolus'' is a genus of fungi in the stinkhorn family. The fruit bodies have three or four simple arms that are initially joined at the tip, but often break apart. The tips of the arms are covered with a slimy, foul-smelling gleba, whi ...

'' (Möller) Lloyd (1907) *''

Pseudocolus grandis ''Pseudocolus'' is a genus of fungi in the stinkhorn family. The fruit bodies have three or four simple arms that are initially joined at the tip, but often break apart. The tips of the arms are covered with a slimy, foul-smelling gleba, whi ...

'' J.A. Sáenz, Rawla & R. Sharma (1982) *''

Pseudocolus jaczewskii ''Pseudocolus'' is a genus of fungi in the stinkhorn family. The fruit bodies have three or four simple arms that are initially joined at the tip, but often break apart. The tips of the arms are covered with a slimy, foul-smelling gleba, whi ...

'' Woronow (1918) :Described in 1918 from specimens collected by Voronoc in South Colchis; synonymous with ''P. fusiformis'' *'' Pseudocolus javanicus'' (Penz.) Lloyd (1907) *'' Pseudocolus mauritianus'' Lloyd (1917) *'' Pseudocolus rothae'' (Lloyd) Yasuda (1916) *'' Pseudocolus rothae'' Lloyd (1907) *'' Pseudocolus schellenbergiae'' (Sumst.) Johnson (1929)

Distribution

''Pseudocolis fusiformis'' is known from east Asia and Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand, and southern Africa, and has been introduced to the United States. ''P. garciae'' is found in North America and South America. ''P. grandis'' is found in both northern and southern India.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7254683 Phallales Agaricomycetes genera Taxa named by Curtis Gates Lloyd Taxa described in 1907