''Cuphophyllus'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of agaric

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Hygrophoraceae The Hygrophoraceae are a family of fungi in the order Agaricales. Originally conceived as containing white-spored, thick-gilled agarics (gilled mushrooms), including ''Hygrophorus'' and ''Hygrocybe'' species (the waxcaps or waxy caps), DNA evide ...

. ''Cuphophyllus'' species belong to a group known as waxcaps in English, sometimes also waxy caps in North America or waxgills in New Zealand. In Europe, ''Cuphophyllus'' species are typical of waxcap grasslands, a declining habitat due to changing agricultural practices. As a result, four species, ''

Cuphophyllus atlanticus ''Cuphophyllus atlanticus'' is a species of agaric (gilled mushroom) in the family Hygrophoraceae. Until recently (2021), the species was considered to be conspecific with the North American '' Cuphophyllus canescens'', but DNA sequencing has sh ...

'' (as '' C. canescens''), '' C. colemannianus'', '' C. lacmus'', and '' C. lepidopus'' are of global conservation concern and are listed as "vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Taxonomy

History

The genus was described by French mycologist

Marcel Bon Marcel Bon (17 March 1925 – 11 May 2014)http://fmbds.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/CAFAM-2014-CR-complet.pdf was one of France's best known field mycologists. He was born in Picardy in 1925 and came to mycology through general botany, and ph ...

in 1985, though it was subsequently synonymized with ''

Hygrocybe ''Hygrocybe'' is a genus of agarics (gilled fungi) in the family Hygrophoraceae. Called waxcaps in English (sometimes waxy caps in North America), basidiocarps (fruit bodies) are often brightly coloured and have dry to waxy caps, white spores, an ...

'' by some authorities. ''Cuphophyllus'' species have sometimes been referred to the genus ''Camarophyllus'' ( Fr.) P.Kumm., but, as argued by Donk (1962), the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

of ''Camarophyllus'' must be ''Agaricus camarophyllus'' Alb. & Schwein. the species from which the genus takes its name. This means that ''Camarophyllus''

sensu stricto ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

is a synonym of ''

Hygrophorus ''Hygrophorus'' is a genus of agarics (gilled mushrooms) in the family Hygrophoraceae. Called "woodwaxes" in the UK or "waxy caps" (together with ''Hygrocybe'' species) in North America, basidiocarps (fruit bodies) are typically fleshy, often wi ...

'', since ''A. camarophyllus'' is a ''Hygrophorus'' species (''

Hygrophorus camarophyllus ''Hygrophorus camarophyllus'' is a species of edible fungus in the genus ''Hygrophorus ''Hygrophorus'' is a genus of agarics (gilled mushrooms) in the family Hygrophoraceae. Called "woodwaxes" in the UK or "waxy caps" (together with ''Hygrocyb ...

''). This is now accepted by all standard authorities. Singer (1951), however, proposed ''Agaricus pratensis'' (= ''

Cuphophyllus pratensis ''Cuphophyllus pratensis'' is a species of agaric (gilled mushroom) in the family Hygrophoraceae. It has been given the recommended English name of meadow waxcap in the UK and in North America has variously been called the meadow waxy cap, salmon ...

'') as the type species of ''Camarophyllus'', which means that ''Camarophyllus'' ''sensu'' Singer is a synonym of ''Cuphophyllus''.

Current status

Recent

molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bioche ...

research, based on cladistic analysis of DNA sequences, indicates that ''Cuphophyllus'' is

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

and forms a natural group distinct from ''Hygrocybe'' sensu stricto.

Description

Species are distinguished from most other waxcaps by producing non-viscid, typically white, grey, or brownish basidiocarps (fruit bodies) often with decurrent lamellae (gills). Species of the genus ''

Chromosera ''Chromosera'' is a genus of fungi in the family Hygrophoraceae. Within the family Hygrophoraceae it is closely related to the genus '' Gloioxanthomyces''. It contains five species. The generic name honors the mycologist Meinhard Moser, and also a ...

'' are superficially similar, though often more brightly coloured.

Habitat and Distribution

In Europe, ''Cuphophyllus'' species are typically found in agriculturally unimproved, short-sward grasslands (including pastures and lawns). Elsewhere, they are most frequently found in woodland. The genus is cosmopolitan.

Economic usage

Fruit bodies of one of the commoner European waxcap species, '' C. pratensis'', are edible and widely collected, sometimes being offered for sale in local markets.

Species

*'' C. acutoides'' *'' C. adonis'' *'' C. albidocinereus'' *'' C. angustifolius'' *'' C. antillanus'' *'' C. atlanticus'' *'' C. aurantius'' *'' C. basidiosus'' *'' C. berkeleyi'' *'' C. bicolor'' *'' C. bondii'' *'' C. borealis'' *'' C. canescens'' *'' C. cereopallidus'' *'' C. cinerellus'' *'' C. cinereus'' *'' C. citrinopallidus'' *'' C. colemannianus'' *'' C. comosus'' *'' C. esteriae'' *'' C. flavipes'' *'' C. flavipesoides'' *'' C. fornicatus'' *'' C. fuscensis'' *'' C. griseorufescens'' *'' C. hygrocyboides'' *'' C. lacmus'' *'' C. lamarum'' *'' C. lepidopus'' *'' C. nebularis'' *'' C. neopratensis'' *'' C. neopratensis'' *'' C. ochraceopallidus'' *'' C. pegleri'' *'' C. pratensis'' *'' C. pseudopallidus'' *'' C. radiatus'' *'' C. rainierensis'' *'' C. recurvatus'' *'' C. rigelliae'' *'' C. roseascens'' *'' C. russocoriaceus'' *'' C. subradiatus'' *'' C. subviolaceus'' *'' C. umbrinus'' *'' C. virgineus'' File:2007-10-20 Cuphophyllus virgineus 2.jpg, File:2008-11-08 Cuphophyllus colemannianus.jpg, File:Camarophyllus griseorufescens 62594.jpg, File:C. canescens 1.jpg, File:Cuphophyllus fornicatus (Fr.) Lodge, Padamsee & Vizzini 486214.jpg,

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q918158 Agaricales genera Hygrophoraceae