''Thelephora terrestris'' is an inedible species of

fungus 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

Basidiomycota 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 ...

phylum. It is commonly known by the name Common Fiber Vase because of its circular and overlapping cap. As well, it has also been called the Earthfan fungus.

History and taxonomy

This fungus was first described by

Jakob Friedrich Ehrhart Jakob Friedrich Ehrhart (4 November 1742, Holderbank, Aargau – 26 June 1795) was a German botanist, a pupil of Carl Linnaeus at Uppsala University, and later director of the Botanical Garden of Hannover, where he produced several major botanical ...

in 1787.

Habitat and ecology

Throughout North America and Europe ''Thelephora terrestris'' can be found in soil. It is commonly found in sandy soils under pine trees, on roots and twigs. This

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 fungus forms a symbiotic relationship known as

mycorrhizae A mycorrhiza (from Greek μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. mycorrhizae, mycorrhiza or mycorrhizas) is a symbiotic association between a fungus and a plant. The term mycorrhiza refers to the role of the fungus in the plan ...

, especially with ''

Pinus A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden a ...

'' species. It is commonly found in pine forests as well as

plant nursery A nursery is a place where plants are propagated and grown to a desired size. Mostly the plants concerned are for gardening, forestry or conservation biology, rather than agriculture. They include retail nurseries, which sell to the general p ...

soils world wide. This fungi is known to get water and nutrients from far away and being capable of growing in both low

fertility Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Ferti ...

and high fertility soils. It is a dominant mycorrhizal fungus, re-establishes quickly after disturbances such as forest fire, and is considered stress tolerant. Outside of the ''Pinus'' genus, it is also capable of forming mycorrizha with other trees such as

alder Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engl ...

, and poplar. ''Thelephora terrestris'' virus 1 (TtV1), which is a

mycovirus Mycoviruses (Ancient Greek: μύκης ' ("fungus") + Latin '), also known as mycophages, are viruses that infect fungi. The majority of mycoviruses have double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) genomes and isometric particles, but approximately 30% have pos ...

, can infect this fungi.

Description

''Thelephora terrestris'' is present year round, though is mostly seen July to December. As the

fruiting body 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 cy ...

forms, it starts off lighter in colour then turns to a darker shade of brown as it ages. A stalk may not be present, if there is one, it is usually very short. Sometimes the fungi is grown in large colonies. The shape is described as a fan and can grow up to 6 cm wide. It has been described to have a moldy earth like smell. The

hyphae A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one or ...

of mycorrhizal forms walls that becomes thicker as it ages, while in earlier stages may be spiney. When mating, the hyphae forms

clamp connection A clamp connection is a hook-like structure formed by growing hyphal cells of certain fungi. It is a characteristic feature of Basidiomycetes fungi. It is created to ensure that each cell, or segment of hypha separated by septa (cross walls), rece ...

s The

spores 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, ...

are purple-brown colour, ellipsoid or angular shape. The edibility of fungus is unknown, but it is considered too tough to be worthwhile. '' Thelephora palmata'' is a similar species which is comparatively stinky and less widely distributed.

Physiology

The full life cycle can be reproduced and studied in a laboratory, both ectomycorrhizal form and mushroom form. Due to the

mycotoxin A mycotoxin (from the Greek μύκης , "fungus" and τοξίνη , "toxin") is a toxic secondary metabolite produced by organisms of kingdom Fungi and is capable of causing disease and death in both humans and other animals. The term 'mycotoxin' ...

s that the fungi produces, it protects pinus trees from root

pathogen In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a ger ...

Phytophthora cinnamomi ''Phytophthora cinnamomi'' is a soil-borne water mould that produces an infection which causes a condition in plants variously called " root rot", "dieback", or (in certain ''Castanea'' species), "ink disease". The plant pathogen is one of the w ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar , from = Q1816880

Terrestris This list of Latin and Greek words commonly used in systematic names is intended to help those unfamiliar with classical languages to understand and remember the scientific names of organisms. The binomial nomenclature used for animals and plants i ...

Taxa named by Jakob Friedrich Ehrhart