''Apioperdon pyriforme'' commonly known as the pear-shaped puffball or stump puffball, is a

saprobic 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 ( ...

fungus 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 th ...

present throughout much of the world. Emerging in autumn, this

puffball 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'', ''Ca ...

is common and abundant on decaying logs of both

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

and

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

wood. It is considered a choice

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 ...

when still immature and the inner flesh is white. It is often called ''Lycoperdon pyriforme'', but was transferred to ''Apioperdon'' in 2017 based on phylogenetic and morphological differences. It is the only species in the genus.

Taxonomy

The fungus was first described in the scientific literature by

Jacob Christian Schaeffer Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Ja ...

in 1774. In 2001, DNA evidence compiled by Dirk Krüger and a number of other

mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungus, fungi, including their genetics, genetic and biochemistry, biochemical properties, their Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and ethnomycology, their use to humans, including as a so ...

s suggested that the genus ''

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 cl ...

'' was

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 converg ...

, with the pear-shaped puffball differing most significantly from the group. This finding was supported by several morphological differences including the presence of

rhizomorph Mycelial cords are linear aggregations of parallel-oriented hyphae. The mature cords are composed of wide, empty vessel hyphae surrounded by narrower sheathing hyphae. Cords may look similar to plant roots, and also frequently have similar functio ...

s and its preference for wood. A 2003 publication of further research moved the puffball to the genus ''Morganella'' with 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 ...

's ending changed for

agreement Agreement may refer to: Agreements between people and organizations * Gentlemen's agreement, not enforceable by law * Trade agreement, between countries * Consensus, a decision-making process * Contract, enforceable in a court of law ** Meeting o ...

. In 2008, however, Larsson and Jeppson revisited the phylogeny of the

Lycoperdaceae The Agaricaceae are a family of basidiomycete fungi and include the genus ''Agaricus'', as well as basidiomycetes previously classified in the families Tulostomataceae, Lepiotaceae, and Lycoperdaceae. Taxonomy The family Agaricaceae was publish ...

, with a broader sampling of species, and retained the taxon in ''Lycoperdon''. It was renamed ''Apioperdon pyriforme'' in 2017. The specific epithet ''pyriforme'' is

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 ...

for "pear-shaped".

Description

The

fruit body In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

of the pear-shaped puffball measures 1.5 to 4.5 cm in width by 2 to 4.5 cm in height. They are often pear-shaped as the name suggests, but they may also be nearly spherical. When very young they are covered in small white spines that typically fall off before maturity. A small developing pore may be visible at the top, while the sterile base of the mushroom is small and appears to be pinched in. Colour ranges from nearly white to yellowish brown with the darker shades developing with age, though the base remains white. The central pore ruptures at late maturity to allow the wind and rain to disperse the spores. The base is attached to the wood by means of

s (thick, cord-like strands of

mycelium Mycelium (plural mycelia) is a root-like structure of a fungus consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. Fungal colonies composed of mycelium are found in and on soil and many other substrate (biology), substrates. A typical single ...

). The

gleba Gleba (, from Latin ''glaeba, glēba'', "lump") is the fleshy spore-bearing inner mass of certain fungi such as the puffball or stinkhorn. The gleba is a solid mass of spores, generated within an enclosed area within the sporocarp. The continu ...

, or inner

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 ...

mass, is white when young, but it becomes greenish-yellow to dark olive-brown with age. The spores measure 3 to 4.5 µm and are round, smooth and a dark olive-brown in colour. ''

Lycoperdon perlatum ''Lycoperdon perlatum'', popularly known as the common puffball, warted puffball, gem-studded puffball, wolf farts or the devil's snuff-box, is a species of puffball fungus in the family Agaricaceae. A widespread species with a cosmopolitan di ...

'' is a similar species.

Edibility

The fungus is a choice

when still immature and the inner flesh is white. Additionally, one guide says that the puffballs are edible when densely fruited. They can be used fresh, or cut into thin slices for drying, which can then be pulverized for use as a flavoring powder. Caution should be used as the similar-looking ''

Scleroderma citrinum ''Scleroderma citrinum'', commonly known as the common earthball, pigskin poison puffball, or common earth ball, is the most common species of earthball in the UK and occurs widely in woods, heathland and in short grass from autumn to winter. '' ...

'' and other species of ''Scleroderma'' are inedible.

References

External links

Mushroom Expert Profile
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q79337350, from2=Q79337417, from3=Q865798 Lycoperdaceae Fungi described in 1774 Fungi of Europe Fungi of North America Edible fungi Puffballs Monotypic Basidiomycota genera