''Stemonitis'' is a distinctive

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

slime mould Slime mold or slime mould is an informal name given to a polyphyletic assemblage of unrelated eukaryotic organisms in the Stramenopiles, Rhizaria, Discoba, Amoebozoa and Holomycota clades. Most are near-microscopic; those in the Myxogastria ...

s found throughout the world (except

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

). They are characterised by the tall brown

sporangia A sporangium (from Late Latin, ; : sporangia) is an enclosure in which spores are formed. It can be composed of a unicellular organism, single cell or can be multicellular organism, multicellular. Virtually all plants, fungus, fungi, and many ot ...

, supported on slender stalks, which grow in clusters on rotting

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

. The genus was first described by German botanist

Johann Gottlieb Gleditsch Johann Gottlieb Gleditsch (5 February 1714, in Leipzig – 5 October 1786, in Berlin) was a German physician and botanist known for pioneer investigations of plant sexuality and plant reproduction, reproduction. Biography He studied medicine an ...

in 1753. A 2014 estimate suggests that there are 18 species in the genus. Identification within the genus is difficult, and can only be performed with confidence using a

microscope A microscope () is a laboratory equipment, laboratory instrument used to examine objects that are too small to be seen by the naked eye. Microscopy is the science of investigating small objects and structures using a microscope. Microscopic ...

or by

DNA sequencing DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine. The ...

. A fossil specimen (in

Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. Th ...

) is known from the mid-

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

(99 ma).

Species

The following species are accepted by ''Species Fungorum'': *''

Stemonitis axifera ''Stemonitis axifera'' is a species of slime mold. It fruits in clusters on dead wood, and has distinctive tall reddish-brown sporangia, supported on slender stalks. Taxonomy The species was first described as ''Trichia axifera'' by Jean Baptist ...

'' (Bull.) T.Macbr. (1889) *''Stemonitis farrensis'' T. N. Lakh. & Mukerji (1977) *''Stemonitis ferruginea'' Ehrenb. (1818) *''Stemonitis flavogenita'' E. Jahn (1904) *''Stemonitis foliicola'' Ing (1967) *''

Stemonitis fusca ''Stemonitis fusca'' is a species of slime mold. It fruits in clusters on dead wood and has distinctive tall brown sporangium, sporangia supported on slender stalks with a total height of approximately 6–20 mm tall. Subspecies ''Stemoniti ...

'' Roth (1787) *''Stemonitis graciliformis'' Nann.-Bremek., Mukerji & Pasricha (1984) *''Stemonitis herbatica'' Peck (1874) *''Stemonitis inconspicua'' Nann.-Bremek. (1966) *''Stemonitis laxifila'' Nann.-Bremek. & Y. Yamam. (1988) *''Stemonitis lignicola'' Nann.-Bremek. (1973) *''Stemonitis marjana'' Y. Yamam. (2000) *''Stemonitis mediterraneensis'' H.H. Doğan & Eroğlu (2014) *''Stemonitis mussooriensis'' G. W. Martin, K. S. Thind & Sohi (1957) *''Stemonitis nigrescens'' Rex (1891) *''Stemonitis pallida'' Wingate (1899) *''Stemonitis rhizoideipes'' Nann.-Bremek., R. Sharma & K. S. Thind (1984) *''Stemonitis smithii'' T.Macbr. (1893) *''

Stemonitis splendens ''Stemonitis splendens'', commonly known as the chocolate tube slime, is a species of slime mold Slime mold or slime mould is an informal name given to a polyphyletic assemblage of unrelated eukaryotic organisms in the Stramenopiles, Rhiza ...

'' Rostaf. (1875) *''Stemonitis virginiensis'' Rex (1891)

References

External links

* Myxogastria Myxogastria genera {{Amoebozoa-stub