''Scleroderma verrucosum'' is a

basidiomycete Basidiomycota () is one of two large divisions that, together with the Ascomycota, constitute the subkingdom Dikarya (often referred to as the "higher fungi") within the kingdom Fungi. Members are known as basidiomycetes. More specifically, Basi ...

fungus and a member of the genus ''

Scleroderma Scleroderma is a group of autoimmune diseases that may result in changes to the skin, blood vessels, muscles, and internal organs. The disease can be either localized to the skin or involve other organs, as well. Symptoms may include areas o ...

'', or "earth balls". First described scientifically in 1791, the species has a cosmopolitan distribution, and grows in the ground in nutrient-rich, sandy soils.

Taxonomy

The species was first described by

Pierre Bulliard Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

in 1791 as ''Lycoperdon verrucosum''.

Christian Hendrik Persoon Christiaan Hendrik Persoon (1 February 1761 – 16 November 1836) was a German mycologist who made additions to Linnaeus' mushroom taxonomy. Early life Persoon was born in South Africa at the Cape of Good Hope, the third child of an i ...

transferred it to the genus ''

'' in 1801. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''verrucosum'' means "warted".

Description

The

fruit body In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particul ...

is roughly spherical with a somewhat flattened top, and has a thick, stem-like base; it attains a diameter of . Its color is ochre or dingy brown, and the surface is covered with scaly warts that eventually slough off to leave a relatively smooth surface. The thin

flesh Flesh is any aggregation of soft tissues of an organism. Various multicellular organisms have soft tissues that may be called "flesh". In mammals, including humans, ''flesh'' encompasses muscles, fats and other loose connective tissues, but ...

underneath the peridium stains pink to red when the fruit body is cut open. The

peridium The peridium is the protective layer that encloses a mass of spores in fungi. This outer covering is a distinctive feature of gasteroid fungi. Description Depending on the species, the peridium may vary from being paper-thin to thick and rubbe ...

(outer skin) is thin and fragile when dry, and cracks irregularly to form a large opening. The internal spore-bearing tissue, the

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 ...

, is initially white, but becomes light brown and powdery after the spores mature. The spores are spherical, and covered with minute warts or spines, and measure about 12

μm The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Uni ...

in diameter. The fruit bodies are

edible An edible item is any item that is safe for humans to eat. "Edible" is differentiated from "eatable" because it does not indicate how an item tastes, only whether it is fit to be eaten. Nonpoisonous items found in nature – such as some mushro ...

when the gleba is still firm and white. On the other hand, ''S. verrucosum'' appears to cause poisoning symptoms similar to ''

Scleroderma citrinum ''Scleroderma citrinum'', commonly known as the common earthball, pigskin poison puffball, or common earth ball, is the most common species of earthball in the UK and occurs widely in woods, heathland and in short grass from autumn to winter. '' ...

'' at least in some people, so it cannot be recommended for consumption.Gemeiner Kartoffelbovist
In: Pilzdatenbank des Giftnotrufs München. Retrieved, 13 January 2014.Rosemarie Kießling
Eine Vergiftung mit Scleroderma Verrucosum (Bull.) Pers. 1801
Website der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Mykologie. Retrieved, 13 January 2014.

Habitat and distribution

Sclerodermas are

ectomycorrhiza An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycob ...

l. The fruit bodies of ''Scleroderma verrucosum'' grow in the soil in nutrient-rich, sandy soil, often in

deciduous forest In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, af ...

s. The species has been found in Africa, Asia (China and India), Australia, Europe, North America (including Hawaii), and South America. The species was featured on a

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

an postage stamp in 1985.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q902264, from2=Q105058283 Boletales Fungi described in 1791 Fungi of Africa Fungi of Asia Fungi of Australia Fungi of Europe Fungi of North America Fungi of South America Fungi of Hawaii Fungi without expected TNC conservation status Puffballs

Taxonomy

Description

Habitat and distribution

See also

References

External links