''Echinochaete'' is a genus of fungi in the family

Polyporaceae The Polyporaceae are a family of poroid fungi belonging to the Basidiomycota. The flesh of their fruit bodies varies from soft (as in the case of the dryad's saddle illustrated) to very tough. Most members of this family have their hymeniu ...

Circumscribed In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius. Not every polyg ...

by English mycologist Derek Reid in 1963, the genus is widespread in tropical regions and contains five species.

Description

Fruit bodies The sporocarp (also known as fruiting body, fruit body or fruitbody) of fungi is a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures, such as basidia or asci, are borne. The fruitbody is part of the sexual phase of a fungal life cyc ...

of ''Echinochaete'' fungi are annual. They are fan- or spoon-shaped and attached to the

substrate Substrate may refer to: Physical layers *Substrate (biology), the natural environment in which an organism lives, or the surface or medium on which an organism grows or is attached ** Substrate (locomotion), the surface over which an organism lo ...

by a short stipe. The upper surface of the cap is initially velutinous–covered with short, dense, silky, upright hairs, particularly near its base. In age the surface becomes smoother. Its colour is whitish to pinkish, later becoming reddish to brown. The pores on the cap underside have an angular to hexagonal shape. ''Echinochaete'' has a dimitic

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 or ...

l system, containing both generative and skeletal hyphae. The generative hyphae are

hyaline A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from el, ὑάλινος, translit=hyálinos, lit=transparent, and el, ὕαλος, translit=hýalos, lit=crystal, glass, label=none. Histopathology Hyaline cartilage is ...

, thin-walled, and have clamp connections. The skeletal hyphae are thick-walled, with a golden to rusty colour. Hyphae in the context have a strong dextrinoid reaction. They feature spiny setae-like structures in the cap surface, the

hymenium The hymenium is the tissue layer on the hymenophore of a fungal fruiting body where the cells develop into basidia or asci, which produce spores. In some species all of the cells of the hymenium develop into basidia or asci, while in others some ...

, and the walls of the tubes. Spores are cylindrical to

ellipsoid An ellipsoid is a surface that may be obtained from a sphere by deforming it by means of directional scalings, or more generally, of an affine transformation. An ellipsoid is a quadric surface; that is, a surface that may be defined as the ...

al, hyaline, smooth, and thin-walled. The dextrinoid reactivity of the context and the setae-like elements distinguish this genus from '' Polyporus''.

Species

*''

Echinochaete brachypora ''Echinochaete'' is a genus of fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Circumscribed by English mycologist Derek Reid in 1963, the genus is widespread in tropical regions and contains five species. Description Fruit bodies of ''Echinochaete'' fung ...

'' (Mont.) Ryvarden (1978) *'' Echinochaete cinnamomeosquamulosa'' (Henn.) D.A.Reid (1963) *''

Echinochaete maximipora ''Echinochaete'' is a genus of fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Circumscription (taxonomy), Circumscribed by English mycologist Derek Reid in 1963, the genus is widespread in tropical regions and contains five species. Description Basidiocarp, ...

'' Sotome & T.Hatt. (2009) *'' Echinochaete ruficeps'' (Berk. & Broome) Ryvarden (1972) *''

Echinochaete russiceps ''Echinochaete'' is a genus of fungi in the family Polyporaceae. Circumscribed by English mycologist Derek Reid in 1963, the genus is widespread in tropical regions and contains five species. Description Fruit bodies of ''Echinochaete'' fung ...

'' (Berk. & Broome) D.A.Reid (1963)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5332467 Polyporaceae Polyporales genera Taxa described in 1963 Taxa named by Derek Reid