![Flaschenstäubling](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Flaschenst%C3%A4ubling.jpg)
The gasteroid fungi are a group of
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
Basidiomycota. Species were formerly placed in the obsolete
class
Class or The Class may refer to:
Common uses not otherwise categorized
* Class (biology), a taxonomic rank
* Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects
* Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...
Gasteromycetes Fr. (literally "stomach fungi"), or the equally obsolete
order Gasteromycetales
Rea
REA or Rea may refer to:
Places
* Rea, Lombardy, in Italy
* Rea, Missouri, United States
* River Rea, a river in Birmingham, England
* River Rea, Shropshire, a river in Shropshire, England
* Rea, Hungarian name of Reea village in Totești Commun ...
, because they produce
spores
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, ...
inside their
basidiocarps
In fungi, a basidiocarp, basidiome, or basidioma () is the sporocarp of a basidiomycete, the multicellular structure on which the spore-producing hymenium is borne. Basidiocarps are characteristic of the hymenomycetes; rusts and smuts do not ...
(fruit bodies) rather than on an outer surface. However, the class is
polyphyletic
A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of conver ...
, as such species—which include
puffballs
Puffballs are a type of fungus featuring a ball-shaped fruit body that bursts on impact, releasing a cloud of dust-like spores when mature. Puffballs belong to the division Basidiomycota and encompass several genera, including ''Calvatia'', '' ...
,
earthstars
Geastrales is an order of gasterocarpic basidiomycetes (fungi) that are related to Cantharellales. The order contains the single family Geastraceae, commonly known as "earthstars", which older classifications had placed in Lycoperdales, or Pha ...
,
stinkhorns
Phallaceae is a family of fungi, commonly known as stinkhorns, within the order Phallales. Stinkhorns have a worldwide distribution, but are especially prevalent in tropical regions. They are known for their foul-smelling, sticky spore masses, ...
, and
false truffles
A false truffle or a hymenogastrale is any species of fungus that has underground fruiting bodies that produce basidiocarps resembling the true truffles of genus ''Tuber
Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutr ...
—are not closely related to each other. Because they are often studied as a group, it has been convenient to retain the informal (non-
taxonomic) name of "gasteroid fungi".
History
![Tintenfischpilz 1a](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Tintenfischpilz_1a.JPG)
Several gasteroid fungi—such as the stinkhorn, ''
Phallus impudicus
''Phallus impudicus'', known colloquially as the common stinkhorn, is a widespread fungus in the Phallaceae (stinkhorn) family. It is recognizable for its foul odor and its phallic shape when mature, the latter feature giving rise to several ...
'' L.—were formally described by
Carl Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...
in his original ''
Species Plantarum'' of 1753, but the first critical treatment of the group was by
Christiaan Hendrik Persoon in his ''Synopsis methodica fungorum'' of 1801. Until 1981, this book was the starting point for the naming of Gasteromycetes under the ''
International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants''. Although the starting point was subsequently put back to 1753, names of gasteroid fungi used in Persoon's book are still
sanctioned and cannot be replaced by earlier names.
Elias Magnus Fries introduced the name Gasteromycetes for a class of fungi in his ''Systema Mycologicum'' of 1821, although (not using a microscope) he included many species of the
Ascomycota (such as
truffles
A truffle is the fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, predominantly one of the many species of the genus ''Tuber''. In addition to ''Tuber'', many other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including '' Geopora'', '' Pe ...
) within the class. Fries contrasted the Gasteromycetes with the Hymenomycetes, where spores are produced externally on
gills
A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...
, pores, and other surfaces.
This convenient division continued to be used for the next 150 years or so, although by the middle of the twentieth century it had become evident that Gasteromycetes was an artificial class (bringing together a miscellany of unrelated species) and not a natural one. In a 1995 study of British species, by Pegler et al. noted that "these fungi represent an heterogeneous assemblage, a mixture of forms which are derived from various lineages. ...
hey
Hey or Hey! may refer to:
Music
* Hey (band), a Polish rock band
Albums
* ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014
* ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980
* ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
can be collectively referred to as ''gasteroid fungi'', but they cannot be classified as a single group."
[Pegler DN et al. (1995). ''British Puffballs, Earthstars and Stinkhorns: An Account of the British Gasteroid Fungi''. Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens ] DNA-based systematic research has, not unexpectedly, confirmed the diversity of the gasteroid fungi. According to a 2011 estimate, gasteroid fungi comprise about 8.4% of the known
Agaricomycetes.
Description and genera
![Red pouch fungus 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Red_pouch_fungus_01.jpg)
The gasteroid fungi form visibly diverse fruit bodies, but in all cases the spores are formed and reach maturity internally. They are not discharged forcibly, as in
agarics
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 ...
and most other members of the Basidiomycota, but are released passively in a variety of different ways.
[
In the puffballs, which include the genera '']Lycoperdon
''Lycoperdon'' is a genus of puffball mushrooms. The genus has a widespread distribution and contains about 50 species. In general, it contains the smaller species such as the pear-shaped puffball and the gem-studded puffball. It was formerly cla ...
'', ''Bovista
''Bovista'' is a genus of fungi commonly known as the true puffballs. It was formerly classified within the now-obsolete order Lycoperdales, which, following a restructuring of fungal taxonomy brought about by molecular phylogeny, has been spl ...
'', and ''Calvatia
''Calvatia'' is a genus of puffball mushrooms that includes the spectacular giant puffball ''C. gigantea''. It was formerly classified within the now-obsolete order Lycoperdales, which, following a restructuring of fungal taxonomy brough ...
'', spores are formed within spherical to pestle-shaped fruit bodies and are released either by wind (as the fruit body wears away, exposing the spore mass inside) or by raindrops. In the latter case, the fruit bodies develop an ostiole (apical hole) through which spores are puffed out by the pressure of raindrops falling on the fruit body surface. The same ingenious mechanism has evolved separately in the earthstars (''Geastrum
''Geastrum'' ( orthographical variant ''Geaster'') is a genus of puffball-like mushrooms in the family Geastraceae. Many species are known commonly as earthstars.
The name, which comes from ''geo'' meaning ''earth'' and meaning ''star'', refers ...
'' species), which have a hard outer layer to the fruitbody that splits open in a star-like manner to reveal the puffball-like spore sack.
The stinkhorns and their allies, including the genera '' Phallus'', ''Mutinus
''Mutinus'' is a genus of fungi in the family Phallaceae. The genus was first described by Elias Magnus Fries in 1849. According to the ''Dictionary of the Fungi'' (10th edition, 2008), the widespread genus contains 12 species.
Species
Etymo ...
'', ''Clathrus
''Clathrus'' is a genus of fungi of the family Phallaceae, the stinkhorn fungi. As with other members of the family, mature fruit bodies are covered with olive-brown slimy gleba, containing spores, that attracts flies. These fungi are saprobic ...
'', and '' Lysurus'', form spores within internally gelatinous, puffball-like 'eggs'. At maturity the eggs split and various strange spore-receptacles emerge. The spores are coated with a putrid smelling slime that attracts flies—these being the agents of dispersal.
The bird's nest fungi, which include the genera '' Cyathus'' and ''Crucibulum
''Crucibulum'' is a genus in the Nidulariaceae, a family of fungi whose fruiting bodies resemble tiny egg-filled bird's nests. Often called "splash cups", the fruiting bodies are adapted for spore dispersal by using the kinetic energy of fall ...
'', form miniature, egg-like packets of spores within cup-shaped fruit bodies. These packets of spores are ejected by rain-splash and may land some distance away, the packets gradually wearing away to release the spores themselves.
False truffles in such genera as ''Rhizopogon
''Rhizopogon'' is a genus of ectomycorrhizal basidiomycetes in the family Rhizopogonaceae. Species form hypogeous sporocarps commonly referred to as "false truffles". The general morphological characters of ''Rhizopogon'' sporocarps are a si ...
'', '' Hymenogaster'', and '' Melanogaster'' develop underground or at the soil surface. As with the true truffles, some of them have distinctive smells and are actively hunted out by small mammals which may consume them and spread their spores.[ Some New Zealand ]secotioid
Secotioid fungi are an intermediate growth form between mushroom-like hymenomycetes and closed bag-shaped gasteromycetes, where an evolutionary process of gasteromycetation has started but not run to completion. Secotioid fungi may or may not ...
fungi in the genus ''Leratiomyces
''Leratiomyces'' is a genus of mushroom-forming basidiomycetes first proposed three times under invalid names, and finally validated in 2008. It includes several formerly described, variously, from the genera '' Stropharia'', '' Hypholoma'', an ...
'' are shaped and coloured like berries and their spores may be dispersed by ground-dwelling birds.
Habitat and distribution
Most gasteroid fungi are 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 ( ...
, living on dead plant material, including very rotten, fallen wood.
The earthballs (''Scleroderma
Scleroderma is a group of autoimmune diseases that may result in changes to the skin, blood vessels, muscles, and internal organs. The disease can be either localized to the skin or involve other organs, as well. Symptoms may include areas ...
'' species), dyeballs (''Pisolithus
''Pisolithus'' is a genus of fungi within the family Sclerodermataceae ( suborder Sclerodermatineae). The type species, ''P. arenarius'', is now known to be synonymous with ''P. arhizus''.
Species
As accepted by Species Fungorum;
* ...
'' species), and many false truffles are ectomycorrhizal, forming a mutually beneficial relationship with the roots of living trees.
These species are cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan may refer to:
Food and drink
* Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo"
History
* Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953
Hotels and resorts
* Cosmopoli ...
, but the stinkhorns and their allies are most diverse in the wet tropics.
Producing spores in an enclosed fruit body is a suitable adaptation for growing in arid conditions. Several genera, including '' Podaxis'', '' Battarrea'', '' Phellorinia'', and ''Tulostoma
''Tulostoma'' is a genus of fungi in the family Agaricaceae. Species in the genus are commonly known as stalkballs, or stalked puffballs. Fossils of ''Tulostoma'' have been reported from 12 million year old rocks in central England and 13.5 mill ...
'', are typical of steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the temperate grasslands, ...
s and deserts, some also occurring in sand dunes in temperate
In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...
zones.[Miller, 1988, p. 48.]
References
Cited text
*{{cite book , vauthors=Miller HR, Miller OK , title=Gasteromycetes: Morphological and Developmental Features, with Keys to the Orders, Families, and Genera , publisher=Mad River Press , location=Eureka, California , year=1988 , isbn=0-916422-74-7
External links
The Australian National Botanic Gardens Fungi Web Site
Fungal morphology and anatomy
Mushroom types