''Cuphophyllus lacmus'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of agaric (gilled mushroom) 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 ...

. It has been given the recommended English name of grey waxcap. The species has a European distribution, occurring mainly in agriculturally unimproved grassland. Threats to its habitat have resulted in the species being assessed as globally "vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Taxonomy

The species was first described from Denmark in 1803 by naturalist Heinrich Schumacher as ''Agaricus lacmus''. It was transferred to the genus ''Cuphophyllus'' by the 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. 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, has confirmed that ''Cuphophyllus lacmus'' is a distinct species, but within a group (including '' Cuphophyllus subviolaceus'') that requires further research.

Description

Basidiocarps are

agaricoid An agaric () is a type of fungus fruiting body characterized by the presence of a pileus (cap) that is clearly differentiated from the stipe (stalk), with lamellae (gills) on the underside of the pileus. In the UK, agarics are called "mushrooms ...

, up to 70mm (5 in) tall, the cap hemispherical at first, becoming broadly convex to flat when expanded, up to 60mm (3 in) across. The cap surface is smooth, slightly greasy when damp, grey to bluish grey. The lamellae (gills) are waxy, thick, decurrent (running down the stipe), pale to dark grey. The stipe (stem) is smooth, white, lacking a ring. The spore print is white, the spores (under a microscope) smooth, inamyloid, ellipsoid, c. 7 to 8 by 4.5 to 6 μm.

Similar species

The Yellow Foot Waxcap '' Cuphophyllus flavipes'' and the Scandinavian '' Cuphophyllus flavipesoides'' are superficially similar, but in both species the lower part of the stipe is flushed yellow. '' Cuphophyllus subviolaceus'', long considered a synonym of ''C. lacmus'', has been shown to be a distinct species occurring in both Europe and North America, but further research is required to distinguish it morphologically.

Distribution and habitat

The Grey Waxcap is widespread but generally rare throughout Europe. It is also known from

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

. Like most other European waxcaps, ''Cuphophyllus lacmus'' occurs in old, agriculturally unimproved, short-sward grassland (pastures and lawns). Recent research suggests waxcaps are neither

mycorrhizal 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 ...

nor

saprotrophic Saprotrophic nutrition or lysotrophic nutrition is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or waste) organic matter. It occurs in saprotrophs, and is most often associated with fungi (f ...

but may be associated with mosses.

Conservation

''Cuphophyllus lacmus'' is typical of waxcap grasslands, a declining habitat due to changing agricultural practices. As a result, the species is of global conservation concern and is listed as "vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. ''Cuphophyllus lacmus'' also appears on the official or provisional national red lists of threatened fungi in several European countries, including Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway, and Sweden.

References