Discomycetes is a former

taxonomic Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

class of

Ascomycete Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The defi ...

fungi which contains all of the cup, sponge and brain fungi and some club-like fungi. It includes typical cup fungi like the scarlet elf cup and the

orange peel fungus ''Aleuria aurantia'' (orange peel fungus) is a widespread ascomycete fungus in the order Pezizales. The brilliant orange, cup-shaped ascocarps often resemble orange peels strewn on the ground, giving this species its common name. Taxonomy Chris ...

, and fungi with fruiting bodies of more unusual shape, such as morels, truffles and the

swamp beacon ''Mitrula paludosa'' (syn. ''Mitrula phalloides''), the swamp beacon (US) or bog beacon, (UK) is a species of fungus. It is inedible. Habitat These mushrooms are found in swamps and bogs across North America in the cooler climates of south-easte ...

. New taxonomic and molecular data fail to support the monophyly of the discomycetes. *A common feature of Discomycetes are the

asci ASCI or Asci may refer to: * Advertising Standards Council of India * Asci, the plural of ascus, in fungal anatomy * Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative * American Society for Clinical Investigation * Argus Sour Crude Index * Association of ...

, which are typically produced on the surface of cup-like fruiting bodies. In most discomycetes, each ascus contains eight sexual

spore 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, f ...

s that are forcibly discharged into the air when mature. *In modern classifications, the members of the obsolete class are included in

Pezizomycetes Pezizomycetes are a class of fungi within the division Ascomycota. Pezizomycetes are apothecial fungi, meaning that their spore-producing/releasing bodies (ascoma) are typically disk-like, bearing on their upper surfaces a layer of cylindrical s ...

Lecanoromycetes Lecanoromycetes is the largest class of lichenized fungi. It belongs to the subphylum Pezizomycotina in the phylum Ascomycota. The asci (spore-bearing cells) of the Lecanoromycetes most often release spores by rostrate dehiscence. Genera of unc ...

, Leotiomycetes and Sordariomycetes.

References

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External links

The Discomycetes project
at Harvard University (mainly Pezizales)
Synoptic keys to the inoperculate stromatic discomycetes in the Nordic countries: Sclerotiniaceae & Rutstroemiaceae
Ascomycota Obsolete fungus taxa