''Gymnopus dryophilus'' is a

mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...

commonly found 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 t ...

woodlands of Europe and North America. It is generally

saprophytic 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 occasionally also attacks living wood. It belongs to section ''Levipedes'' of the genus, being characterized by a smooth

stem Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

having no hairs at the base (in contrast to section ''Vestipedes''). Until recently it was most frequently known as ''Collybia dryophila''.

Description

The

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

is in diameter, convex, and reddish-brown to ochre (fading to tan with dryness); they become more irregular in shape with age. The

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 ...

, which are only thinly attached to the stem (detaching with age), are whitish and crowded. The spore powder is white; the buff

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, f ...

do not react in

Melzer's reagent Melzer's reagent (also known as Melzer's iodine reagent, Melzer's solution or informally as Melzer's) is a chemical reagent used by mycologists to assist with the identification of fungi, and by phytopathologists for fungi that are plant pathogens ...

. The bald

ranges from long by 3–6 mm in diameter, sometimes thicker at the base.Courtecuisse, R. & Duhem, B. (1994) "Guide des champignons de France et d'Europe" Delachaux et Niestlé , also available in EnglishMarcel Bon: ''The Mushrooms and Toadstools of Britain and North-Western Europe'' Hodder & Stoughton . The taste is palatable. Microscopically the spores are 6×3 µm in size and slightly tear-shaped, there are lobed club-shaped

cystidia A cystidium (plural cystidia) is a relatively large cell found on the sporocarp of a basidiomycete (for example, on the surface of a mushroom gill), often between clusters of basidia. Since cystidia have highly varied and distinct shapes that ar ...

(15–50 µm × 2–6 µm), and the

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 ...

e on the cap

cuticle A cuticle (), or cuticula, is any of a variety of tough but flexible, non-mineral outer coverings of an organism, or parts of an organism, that provide protection. Various types of "cuticle" are non- homologous, differing in their origin, structu ...

can also have lobes. It is contended that ''G. dryophilus'' in fact consists of a

complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

of different species and that several new species (including ''G. brunneolus'', ''G. earleae'' and ''G. subsulphureus'') should be split off from it. However these species are not generally recognized at present. One similar species is '' Rhodocollybia butyracea'', which has a pinkish spore deposit, and some of the spores turn reddish-brown in Melzer's reagent. The species may carry the parasite ''Syzygospora mycetophila'', which causes pale growths on the mushroom surface.

Distribution and habitat

This fungus is very common in northern hemisphere temperate woodlands (so much so that it is sometimes considered a "weed" mushroom).Kuo, M. (2008, May)
''Gymnopus dryophilus''
at the MushroomExpert.Com Web site) It fruits from April to December and is often seen when there are few other fungi in evidence. Although the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

epithet An epithet (, ), also byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) known for accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, di ...

''dryophilus'' means "lover of oak trees", it is also found with other broad-leaved trees and with

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

s. Grows in arcs and fairy rings in oak and pine woods, or as clusters on wood chip mulch from May to October.

Edibility

''Gymnopus dryophilus'' contains toxins which may cause severe gastrointestinal issues. However, it has been listed as

edible An edible item is any item that is safe for humans to eat. "Edible" is differentiated from "eatable" because it does not indicate how an item tastes, only whether it is fit to be eaten. Nonpoisonous items found in nature – such as some mushroo ...

by some sources, though not worthwhile. It is recommended not to eat the stem, which is tough. It has been found to contain

anti-inflammatory Anti-inflammatory is the property of a substance or treatment that reduces inflammation or swelling. Anti-inflammatory drugs, also called anti-inflammatories, make up about half of analgesics. These drugs remedy pain by reducing inflammation as o ...

beta-glucans Beta-glucans, β-glucans comprise a group of β-D-glucose polysaccharides (glucans) naturally occurring in the cell walls of cereals, bacteria, and Fungus, fungi, with significantly differing Physical chemistry, physicochemical properties depend ...

.Pacheco-Sanchez M, Boutin Y, Angers P, Gosselin A, Tweddell RJ. (2006). A bioactive (1→3)-, (1→4)-β-D-glucan from ''Collybia dryophila'' and other mushrooms. ''

Mycologia ''Mycologia'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes papers on all aspects of the fungi, including lichens. It first appeared as a bimonthly journal in January 1909, published by the New York Botanical Garden under the editorship of W ...

''. 98(2): 180-5. The mushroom has a sweet nutty flavor and should not be eaten in contaminated places like industrial or near roads due to its capacity to take up mercury. It is edible but may cause gastrointestinal issues in some people.

References

External links

Index FungorumUSDA ARS Fungal Database
by Robert Sasata, ''Healing-Mushrooms.net'', December, 2007. *Kuo, M. (2008, May

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gymnopus Dryophilus Fungal plant pathogens and diseases Fungi of Europe Marasmiaceae Taxa named by Jean Baptiste François Pierre Bulliard