''Humaria hemisphaerica'', commonly known as the hairy fairy cup or the brown-haired fairy cup, 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 fungi in the family Pyronemataceae. This

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 ...

fungus is recognized by its white inner surface and hairy brown outer surface. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

is derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word ''hemisphaericum'', meaning half a sphere.

Taxonomy

This species was originally described by Swedish mycologist

Elias Magnus Fries Elias Magnus Fries (15 August 1794 – 8 February 1878) was a Swedish mycologist and botanist. Career Fries was born at Femsjö (Hylte Municipality), Småland, the son of the pastor there. He attended school in Växjö. He acquired ...

in 1823 as ''Peziza hemisphaerica''. He considered it to be one of the ''Lachnia'', a name he applied to cup fungi with hairy apothecia. In 1870 Leopold Fuckel transferred ''P. hemisphaerica'' to the genus ''

Humaria ''Humaria'' is a genus of fungi in the family Pyronemataceae. The genus is widespread in northern temperate areas, and contains 16 species. The genus was circumscribed by Karl Wilhelm Gottlieb Leopold Fuckel Karl Wilhelm Gottlieb Leopold Fucke ...

''.

Description

''Humaria hemisphaerica'' has fruiting bodies ( apothecia) that typically measure in diameter by deep. The fruiting bodies are initially spherical and expand to become cuplike at the fungus matures. This species typically does not have a stipe―when it does, it is present as a small abrupt base. The inner surface of the fruiting body (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 ...

) is white, while the outer hairy surface is brown and covered with brown hairs that taper to a sharp point. These hairs are 400–500 x 15–20

μm The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Unit ...

. The

ascospores An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera or ...

are elliptical,

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 ...

, 20–22 x 10–11 μm, and have 2–3 oil droplets. The hairy fairy cup is inedible.

Habitat

''Humaria hemisphaerica'' grows solitary, scattered, or in groups on the ground or sometimes on rotten wood in wooded areas. It is common in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

Similar species

There are several other cup fungi with hairy exteriors that may be confused with ''H. hemisphaerica''. '' Jafnea semitotsa'' is larger (2–5 cm diameter) with a brown interior and a short stipe. '' Trichophaea boudieri'' and '' Trichophaea bullata'' are smaller (1–6 mm diameter).'' Trichophaea abundans'' is another small species that prefers to grow in burned areas.

References

External links

Index Fungorum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Humaria Hemisphaerica Pyronemataceae Fungi of Europe Fungi described in 1870 Inedible fungi