Some micro images (not much to show!)

good evening mycophiles

This fungus is the same that I reported weeks ago but here it is from a different location:

Small white mushroom, with a tomentose covering

These are the new images taken yesterday.

MACRO:

Small basidiocarps with a tomentose veil, hence tomentose cap and ring.

Gregarious or fused at the base

Lamellae free but very close to the stipe

Taste fungoid-sweet, good and palatable

Scent indistinct

Stipe white, but sometimes greyish esp. after handling

Pruinose-puberulent esp. above the ring

Stipe hollow, inside there are longitudinal white fibres (not sure if it is a characteristic of species)

Base slightly swollen in solitary examples

Ring slowly evanescent, leaving a cottony scar

Spores hyaline, don't stain easily.

4% KOH on stipe forms a faint yellowish colour (with a hint of greenish tones?)

MICRO (quite boring)

Cheilocystidia and pleurocystidia not observed

Distinct feature: Spores 2.0-3.0 um which aggregates in pairs or clusters, pip-shaped.

Basidia 4-spore (I managed to see one!)

Veil (or pileipellis) trichoderm of cylindrical hyphae, a few with clamp junctions, unspecialised

Steve vs White fungus with ring: 0-1 in 2018!

Now I met the same fungus in the same locality and even almost the same date (23/10/2018) and I want to rechallange and try to identify this cute and curious species. I just came from the forray (super tired!) and still have my camera in the bag, but these are the images from 2018. I will document gradually this fungus here. It is small (2 cm) and grow in small clusters, with the base of the stipe fused / connexed. I am quite sure that the habitat is leaf litter of Quercus ilex or Ceratonia siliqua, not connifer ( pine leaves present in pic). Investigation for tonight or tmrw!

To be continued...

Ah ok for the BWB Strange u have that violet tinge, but I have to say that it did not stain the spores very well, so better you buy a fresh supply. It is not expensive. IN my humble opinion it should stain both in acid and in water but it does not work well when the pH is slightly alkaline (unlike Congo red). In pH > 10 or so it will precipitate or form some blackish colour if my memory is still good. Well ... just buy a new BWB and see if u can compare the spores of the same sample

Thank you Tuppie - enigma solved!!! I decrease the temp to 40C.

Good day!

Dear friends. Some years ago I built my own desiccatorfresh with temperature control, light, fan, etc. I wanted to ask if 42-49C is the ideal temp to desiccate fungi in a challenging climate with humidity >75% and warm winter temperatures where infections from moulding parasites are not uncommon. Is >50C to high that damages the hyphae/cystidia? TNX

P.s. I place the fresh fungi inside, and those dry I keep them on the lid while working with them which is pretty warm until I am ready and store them in boxes later on.

I had fair success in my last staining of S. crinitia with LACB - Lactic Acid Cotton Blue (what is BWB dear german folks!). Dont mind my question, just a re-assurance, is yr stain truly cotton blue or cresyl / methyl blue? It has that violet tinge which is not typical of cotton blue which is more pure blue. I applied white balance to yr image and there is still the violet hue evident.

Second point, be sure you focus away from the equatorial plane hence yr focus must be on the surface of the spore. I see thick wall perimeter meaning you are focusing inside the spore. One trick is to photograph a mass of spores clumped together and you will hit a bit of everything focus-speaking. My before-last image (no.5) is for example not focused in the right place, yet the perimeter seems nicely focused

Third, the common S. crinita (kindly confirmed for me by Nobi) has very fine punctations / ridges that are difficult even at x1000.

Finally don't be afraid to experiment with post-editing images (enhancing contrast) - see last image and compare the difference with untouched images.

Zitat von Tuppie

The Americans aptly call such a workshop located in a branch (or simply a place for undisturbed reading) a “she shed”.

Well, it reminded me about the fine interiors of a hobbit home in lord of the Rings

It was a pleasure reading and seeing many (but not all!) Pictures of this long-thread post (15 pp omg!), Especially your study-place and drawings. It seems a quiet place there, something which I start missing badly here in Malta 'quietness' and 'peace'. It is 5:30 am and there are already delivery vans and some cars, a few lorries driving in the street (an its not a highway)

Very beautiful/rustic study with little spoilage of silicon technology... with the only silicon is probably the sand collections. I presume they are artistic souvenirs, but if they are just samples of sand, I can send you some sand samples from Malta and Gozo.

Tanks for sharing this

My diagram from my undergoing thesis in the public

The matchstick is important and sometimes I do not immerse the specimen in water but add drops of water on the cap every 2 (-4)hours. This is absorbed and keeps the basidia happy and moulding events are decreased. I sometimes have poor spore deposits when immersed in water. However, leaving them overnight without water might dry esp. for small-capped (<2cm) fruiting bodies.

Very nice subtle pink colour. First time coming across the genus Pseudoclitopilus and I was wondering why the genus Pseudoclitopilus was created/defined - is it only genetically different or there are morphological differences that characterise it? This looks like a Clitocybe.

P.s. the English translation of the German title reads: " White mushroom. Maybe a bitch ?" lol!

I have bit of experience with Arrhenia rickenii and the first set of images is that species. The second set has the feeling of a galerina so follow the track of our colleague Norbert. The last set is a bit different from Arrhenia rik. and unless it is some odd example, I suspect it is an Entoloma. I never seen anything like 11 and 12 and it is a wow for me 😍

Cap slimy, and scent nauseatic like a cocktail of bleach and millipedes! There was only one specimen around so I did not pick it up. I had a small doubt on Leucoagaricus leucothites! Habitat is more similar to that of the Limacella! Then there is the usual problem between furnaceae and subfurnaceae (!!!) but confirming he Limacella is already a big help!

An amazingly large population of Candellomyces (psathyrella) candolleana (unless it is something else) but the habit and habitat (underground woody roots of dead trees) is typical for the species here. Admins may safely move this post to other categories if it is not adequate here!

Thanks Oehrling. I will report here if I find an answer from other sources. For now, there is nothing else to add, and maybe some Bolete expert like Beorn pass from here and see/reply to this post.

I think it is the same one found on NetFlix (Fantastic Fungi) which I liked to watch and learn although there was a rather long section abouy/promoting psychedelic mushrooms and consumption for recreation. The videos showing fungi in fast motion is truly 'fantastic'!

Thank you Nobi for your comment

I try to photograph the spores with the zeiss phototube for my EOS SLR camera and Zeiss microscope because I have a delivery note that it arrived at the post office. The images above are with a digital camera through the eyepiece.

LG

Steve

I have investigated this Scutellina, and I need some opinions and help. The hairs are in the range of 500-800 um, with some reaching 950 and exceptionally almost 1100um. The root of the hair is either single, or divided into two unequal roots, the main one being bulbous, and exceptionally I saw (if my eyes are good) roots divided into 3-5 parts (multifurcate)

The spores are ellipsoid-fusiform, Q c. 1.5, 16-18 x 1.1-1.2 um (spores measured out of the asci) with broad rounded ends

Now what about the ornamentation. Tricky! In my opinion, they are minute warts sometimes forming short ridges (crests) that do not form a distinct net and smaller / shallower from 0.5um.

Applying the key, I can have S. setosa if the spores are judged smooth (but I don't think so) ; S. macrospora if the ornamentation is judged finely punctate (but seems to have a Q of > 1.8). If agreed that all hairs are < 1200um (the longest I found was 1080) an on average > 500 um (then couplet 16) and we have S. vitreola, S. olivascens and S. olivascens var. minutispora, with the last two having spores bigger then in my specimen. To be honest I am not very convinced.

From the Scutellina figures of this key, I liked most S. crinita, where its spore size and ornamentation (micro warts and micro crests) matches very nice, and also the bi to multi furcation of the hairs.

S. crinita

Scutellinia crinita

S. vitreola

ScutelliniaVitreola.pdf

Lovely : love: - I investigate further today. Many thanks

Zitat von Oehrling

Hello Steve,

is it correct that there is no blueing in the flesh?

However, if there was at least temporarily blueing I tend to call them Hortiboletus bubalinus.

FG

Oehrling

I was too sleepy yesterday! So today I checked about Hortiboletus bubalinus and you are right in suggesting this species. From boletales.org; "Flesh whitish in the cap, distinctly pinkish below the cap cuticle, yellowish in the stipe, orange brown in the stipe base" - this is pinpoint true. It could be it. What I see different is the bulbous thick base and the cap do not crack readily as what I witnessed in this population. If different, it is very related species.

Thanks for yr suggestion

Zitat von Oehrling

Hello Steve,

is it correct that there is no blueing in the flesh?

However, if there was at least temporarily blueing I tend to call them Hortiboletus bubalinus.

FG

Oehrling

THANK You Oehrling

In the flesh of the stipe, there was no blueing at all, but in some basidiocarps there was a hint (just a vague hint) on the pore surface and the stipe surface (making it look greenish!), And this before being touched. When the pores were gently scraped, they just become darker and wet.

I went again on site yesterday! I found more specimens and I have some further notes

- 4% NaOH on flesh makes it become slightly pink-pale red

-The scent of fresh specimens is not very strong but had a bit of aromatic or ink-like scent mixed with mushroom-lke scen. When old and drying, the specimens attained a more aromatic scent

-All specimens produce some pinkness (at various degrees) under the cap (a layer of 1mm) and sometimes below the cuticle of the upper region of the stipe

- Never any redness was observed at the base of the stipe (I checked some 8 specimens now!). When camera flash was used, this may show brownish dots but to the eye they are not distinct.

The population was found growing on the bark of Quercus ilex, close to a stream of water. Ascocarps 3-10 mm across, black hair (c 1.5 mm) longest on the rim and also present on the lower surface, but shorter and less dense. Scutellaria scutellata is my first guess but maybe there are other species to be considered. Specimen collected and in the refrigerator. I can check spores and measure the hairs tmrw. Many thanks

I am reading the discussion... those I highlighted in green match well, those in red do not match with my specimen (in my opinion!) Those left unhighlighted not important or distict

Characteristic features of Boletus marekii can be summarised as follows: fruit

bodies relatively small, of a xerocomoid appearance; pileipellis red-coloured from

youth, e.g. orange-red, bright red, carmine to dark red, soon cracking and then

coarsely rimose-areolate over the entire pileus surface, consisting of

a palisadoderm with weakly incrusted hyphae; both tubes and pores yellow,

slightly bluing or pale blue-greening when injured, pores in maturity relatively

large (about 1 mm); spores smooth and truncate; stipe light yellow to whitish yellowish,

in the middle sometimes dirty reddish, dirty red-brownish or wine-reddish;

context in the pileus and upper half of the stipe pale yellowish, when cut

slightly bluing. This species can be easily recognised by its red-coloured pileipellis

and the truncate, smooth spores. Such a combination of characters is quite exceptional,

not occurring in any other species of the Boletaceae.

B. marekii belongs to Boletus L. subgen. Xerocomus (Quél.) Maubl. and macroscopically

is rather similar to some species of the B. chrysenteron group, particularly

Boletus armeniacus Quél., Boletus ripariellus (Redeuilh) Watling and Boletus

fennicus (Harmaja) Šutara, partly also Boletus porosporus (Imler) ex

Watling, Boletus rubellus Krombh. and a reddish form of Boletus declivitatum

(C. Martin) Watling.

Spores at x 1000 in water and half strength Cotton blue , some images with contrast enhanced.

I cannot really judge, some spores are sub truncate (few truncate) others are rounded-obtuse.

I throw in thediagram from the paper

[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228537710_Boletus_marekii_a_new_species_with_truncate_spores_from_the_Boletus_chrysenteron_group/figures?lo=1]

Fig. 6. Boletus marekii: a – spores; b – cheilocystidia; c – pleurocystidia; d – caulocystidia; e – two caulobasidioles with one caulobasidium bearing almost fully developed, distinctly truncate spores. Del. J. Šutara.

This is a fresh post for a Bolete found under Quercus ilex, fruiting early in October, in calcareous substrate present in the M altese Islands, maybe someone is familiar with them.

This collection forms flattened or shallowly convex caps sometimes upturning (involute) to a large extent initially starting as dark sepia or cinnamon brown with red hues, cracking at an early age as a net and deepening while maturing with the exposed flesh in these cracks becoming amazingly deep red. It has the X. chrysenteron effect! Margin beige to light brown

The stipe is chrome yellow with golden-sepia flushes, especially towards the base. Mature specimens (5 hrs after collection) develop a reddish collar under the stipe. W hen cut in half, there is no bluening both in the stipe or in the pileus, however a red layer is formed below the cuticle of the cap and at the borders of the uppermost part of the stipe. The context in collected specimens develops a sepia brown color at the lower half (but no color change in the fresh-cut specimens, (hence color is light yellow)

Hymenium or stipe do not change color when bruised

Hymenium pale yellow then darkens to olive-brown with age

Pores angular, rectangular, pentagon or sometimes hexagon, 0.5 to 1.0 (1.3) mm across the widest diameter.

Scent faint sweet, but unless something abnormal took place, it became strongly aromatic, like resin of pine trees when oldened by one day

Spores elongated ellipsoid (truncate ends not detected) with amorphous non distinct oil bodies. Measurement: 10.2 [11.6 ; 12.2] 13.7 × 4.3 [5.1 ; 5.5] 6.3 µm [ Mean = 11.9 × 5.3 µm ]; Qe = 1.9 [2.2 ; 2.3] 2.6 [mean 2.3] Inamyloid.