''Morchella elata'' is a species of

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 t ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Morchellaceae The Morchellaceae are a family of ascomycete fungi in the order Pezizales. According to a standard reference work, the family has contained at least 49 species distributed among four genera. However, in 2012, five genera that produce ascoma ...

. It is one of many related species commonly known as black morels, and until 2012 the name ''M. elata'' was broadly applied to black morels throughout the globe. Like most members of the genus, ''M. elata'' is a popular edible fungus and is sought by many

mushroom hunter Mushroom hunting, mushrooming, mushroom picking, mushroom foraging, and similar terms describe the activity of gathering mushrooms in the wild, typically for culinary use. This practice is popular throughout most of Europe, Australia, Japan, K ...

Taxonomy and phylogeny

The fruit bodies of '' Morchella'' species, including ''M. elata'', are highly polymorphic in appearance, exhibiting variations in shape, color and size; this has contributed to uncertainties regarding taxonomy. Discriminating between the various species is complicated by uncertainty regarding which species are truly biologically distinct.

Mushroom hunters Mushroom hunting, mushrooming, mushroom picking, mushroom foraging, and similar terms describe the activity of gathering mushrooms in the wild, typically for culinary use. This practice is popular throughout most of Europe, Australia, Japan, ...

refer to them by their color as the species are very similar in appearance and vary considerably within species and age of individual. Early

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

analyses supported the hypothesis that the genus comprises only a few species with considerable phenotypic variation. More recent DNA work, however, has revealed more than a dozen distinct groups of morels in North America, and over 60 worldwide. An extensive DNA study showed three discrete clades, or genetic groups, consisting of the black morels (''Morchella elata'' and others), the yellow morels ('' Morchella esculenta'' and others), and the white morels ('' Morchella rufobrunnea'' and '' Morchella anatolica''). Species within the Elata clade (also referred to as Distantes), are characterised by the gradual darkening of their sterile ridges upon maturity, with the exception of ''

Morchella tridentina ''Morchella tridentina'' is a cosmopolitan species of ascomycete fungus in the family Morchellaceae. Commonly referred to as the mountain blond or western blond morel in North America, it produces conical, grey to buff fruit bodies that are ruf ...

'' (='' Morchella frustrata''), which has persistently pale ridges. Within the black and yellow clades, there are dozens of individual species, many

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to individual continents or regions. This species-rich view is supported by studies in North America,

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

, and China. The scientific name ''Morchella elata'' was proposed by Elias Magnus Fries from Sweden in 1822. DNA analysis in 2011 has shown North American black morels to be largely distinct from European species, therefore restricting the use of the ''M. elata'' name to Europe. In 2012, Kuo et al. provided names for many of the North American black morels that may have been referred to as ''M. elata'' in the past. However, in a subsequent study by Richard et al. (2014) proposing a unified taxonomy for the genus, it is suggested that Fries' original description of ''Morchella elata'' may correspond to phylogenetic lineage ''Mel''-10, which has been since described from North America as '' Morchella importuna'', but later shown to have a widespread transcontinental distribution. The variety ''M. elata'' var. ''purpurescens'', characterised by the purple- or pink-colored tinges of its ascocarps, is now considered to belong to a phylogenetically distinct lineage (Richard et al. 2014). Eastern North America * '' M. angusticeps'' * '' M. septentrionalis'' Western North America * '' M. brunnea'' * '' M. capitata'' * '' M. importuna'' * '' M. septimelata'' * '' M. sextelata'' * '' M. snyderi'' * '' M. tomentosa''

Description

''Morchella elata'' has operculate asci (i.e., asci opening by an apical lid to discharge the spores). It further has unicellular hyaline ascospores with polar oil droplets. Despite the fact that many interpretations of ''M. elata'' exist throughout the years, most authors agree that Fries' original concept refers to a species with dark, conical ascocarps and more or less parallel vertical ridges, with horizontal interconnecting ridges arranged in a "ladderlike" pattern. This is an

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 ...

species, although like other morels, some individuals may be allergic to it, so it must be cooked before being eaten. It can also be dried for later use. However, according to one field guide it may cause gastrointestinal disorder, and cannot easily be identified without a microscope.

Ecology and distribution

''Morchella elata'' fruits during spring on soil. Fries' original description, which was based on a collection from a fir wood in Sweden, reported it as rare: "''In silvis abiegnis, praecipue locis humidis adustis, raro''". However, since the true identity of ''M. elata'' is not yet fully clarified, its exact ecological preferences and distribution remain unclear.

Toxicity

Morels contain small amounts of hydrazine toxins or an unknown toxin that are destroyed through cooking, (the presence of hydrazine is controversial since there are no primary references of hydrazine having been detected in the species), so morel mushrooms should never be eaten raw. It has been reported that even cooked morels can sometimes cause mild

intoxication Intoxication — or poisoning, especially by an alcoholic or narcotic substance — may refer to: * Substance intoxication: ** Alcohol intoxication ** LSD intoxication ** Toxidrome ** Tobacco intoxication ** Cannabis intoxication ** Cocaine i ...

symptoms when consumed with alcohol.

References

External links

*
California Fungi
{{Taxonbar, from=Q627991

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