''Tricholomella'' is a fungal
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 ...
in the family
Lyophyllaceae
The Lyophyllaceae is a family of fungi in the order Agaricales. A 2008 estimate indicated eight genera
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil orga ...
.
The genus is
monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...
, containing the single species ''Tricholomella constricta'',
described as new to science by the Ukrainian mycologist
Mariya Yakovlevna Zerova in 1979. Zerova's original publication was
invalid
Invalid may refer to:
* Patient, a sick person
* one who is confined to home or bed because of illness, disability or injury (sometimes considered a politically incorrect term)
* Invalid (film), a 2023 Slovak black comedy movie
* .invalid, a top-l ...
, and it was later republished validly by
Kuulo Kalamees in 1992. The fungus is found in Asia and Europe.
Taxonomy
The presence or absence of siderophilous granulation (iron-staining granules) in the
basidia
A basidium (: basidia) is a microscopic spore-producing structure found on the hymenophore of reproductive bodies of basidiomycete fungi. The presence of basidia is one of the main characteristic features of the group. These bodies are also ...
(soire-bearing cells) has been a point of contention in the
taxonomic placement of ''Tricholomella''. While this characteristic would suggest attribution to genera like ''
Lyophyllum
''Lyophyllum'' is a genus of about 40 species of fungi, widespread in north temperate regions.
Species
References
Lyophyllaceae
Agaricales genera
{{Agaricales-stub ...
'' or ''
Calocybe'', Zerova (1979) denied the presence of such granulation in ''Tricholomella''. This character has also presented problems in other genera such as ''
Hypsizygus'' and is considered by some mycologists to be an unreliable taxonomic feature.
Description
''Tricholomella constricta'' is a
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
,
fleshy mushroom of small to medium size, typically with a
cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...
measuring 3–6 cm in diameter. The fruiting bodies are tricholomatoid, meaning they have a general appearance similar to species in the genus ''
Tricholoma
''Tricholoma'' is a genus of 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 ...
''. Young specimens have a pure white and pruinose (covered with a powder-like bloom) cap that is convex to convex-campanulate (bell-shaped). As the mushroom matures, the cap becomes convex-plane to plane, sometimes developing an obtuse
umbo. The centre may become slightly brownish, yellowish or greyish with age. The cap surface is silky, shiny, smooth and dry.
The gills (
lamellae
Lamella (: lamellae) means a small plate or flake in Latin, and in English may refer to:
Biology
* Lamella (mycology), a papery rib beneath a mushroom cap
* Lamella (botany)
* Lamella (surface anatomy), a plate-like structure in an animal
* Lame ...
) are white, occasionally developing a pinkish tinge, and are crowded, large, and emarginate (notched where they meet the stipe) to almost free. The
stipe is white, dry, and fibrillose-floccose (covered with small tufts of fibres) when young. Initially, it features a narrow membranaceous
ring
(The) Ring(s) may refer to:
* Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry
* To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell
Arts, entertainment, and media Film and TV
* ''The Ring'' (franchise), a ...
at the apex which quickly disappears. The mature stipe becomes fibrillose, smooth, cylindric or slightly tapered at the base, and sometimes develops a rooting base. It typically measures 2–5 cm in length and 1–1.5 cm in thickness. The mushroom has a white
veil
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the human head, head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has be ...
which is membranaceous and quickly disappears as the fruiting body matures. The
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, ...
is white and thick. Both the smell and taste are strongly mealy.
Microscopically, ''T. constricta'' produces a white
spore print
300px, Making a spore print of the mushroom ''Volvariella volvacea'' shown in composite: (photo lower half) mushroom cap laid on white and dark paper; (photo upper half) cap removed after 24 hours showing warm orange ("tussock") color spore print. ...
. The
spore
In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual reproduction, sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for biological dispersal, dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores fo ...
s are
ellipsoid
An ellipsoid is a surface that can be obtained from a sphere by deforming it by means of directional Scaling (geometry), scalings, or more generally, of an affine transformation.
An ellipsoid is a quadric surface; that is, a Surface (mathemat ...
to oval, distinctly echinulate (covered with small spines or projections), and relatively large, measuring 7–10 × 4–6
μm
The micrometre (Commonwealth English as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American English), also commonly known by the non-SI term micron, is a unit of length in the International System ...
. They are
hyaline
A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from , and .
Histopathology
Hyaline cartilage is named after its glassy appearance on fresh gross pathology. On light microscopy of H&E stained slides, the extracellula ...
(transparent),
inamyloid
In mycology a tissue or feature is said to be amyloid if it has a positive amyloid reaction when subjected to a crude chemical test using iodine as an ingredient of either Melzer's reagent or Lugol's solution, producing a blue to blue-black staini ...
(not
staining
Staining is a technique used to enhance contrast in samples, generally at the Microscope, microscopic level. Stains and dyes are frequently used in histology (microscopic study of biological tissue (biology), tissues), in cytology (microscopic ...
blue-black with
iodine
Iodine is a chemical element; it has symbol I and atomic number 53. The heaviest of the stable halogens, it exists at standard conditions as a semi-lustrous, non-metallic solid that melts to form a deep violet liquid at , and boils to a vi ...
solutions), and cyanophilous (staining with certain blue dyes). The
basidia
A basidium (: basidia) is a microscopic spore-producing structure found on the hymenophore of reproductive bodies of basidiomycete fungi. The presence of basidia is one of the main characteristic features of the group. These bodies are also ...
(spore-producing cells) are 4-spored.
Hymenial cystidia (sterile cells in the spore-bearing layer) are absent. The epicutis is not cellular, the
hypha
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 o ...
e have
clamp connection
A clamp connection is a hook-like structure formed by growing hyphal cells of certain fungi. It is a characteristic feature of basidiomycete fungi. It is created to ensure that each cell, or segment of hypha separated by septa (cross walls), rece ...
s, and the hymenophoral trama (tissue within the gills) has a regular cellular arrangement.
Habitat and distribution
''Tricholomella constricta'' inhabits deciduous and
mixed forest
Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest is a temperate climate terrestrial habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature, with broadleaf tree ecoregions, and with conifer and broadleaf tree mixed coniferous forest ecoregions.
These ...
s,
steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the tropical and subtropica ...
s,
meadow
A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable con ...
s, and
pasture
Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing.
Types of pasture
Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, c ...
s throughout Eastern Europe and Asia, fruiting from June to October. This rare species has been documented in Estonia (seven localities), Latvia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Russia (
Kirov Oblast
Kirov Oblast ( rus, Кировская область, p=ˈkʲirəfskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast) located in Eastern Europe. Its administrative center is the city of Kirov. As of the 2010 census, the population ...
,
Leningrad Oblast
Leningrad Oblast (, ; ; ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). The oblast has an area of and a population of 2,000,997 (2021 Russian census, 2021 Census); up from 1,716,868 recorded in the 2010 Russian census ...
, and
Primorsky Krai
Primorsky Krai, informally known as Primorye, is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (a krais of Russia, krai) of Russia, part of the Far Eastern Federal District in the Russian Far East. The types of inhabited localities in Russia, ...
in the
Far East
The Far East is the geographical region that encompasses the easternmost portion of the Asian continent, including North Asia, North, East Asia, East and Southeast Asia. South Asia is sometimes also included in the definition of the term. In mod ...
).
References
{{Taxonbar , from=Q10702832
Lyophyllaceae
Taxa described in 1992
Monotypic Agaricales genera