''Tricholoma magnivelare'' is a

gilled mushroom 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 ...

found East of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...

in North America growing in coniferous woodland. These ectomycorrhizal fungi are typically

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 that exist in a symbiotic relationship with various species of

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts ...

, commonly

jack pine Jack pine (''Pinus banksiana'') is an eastern North American pine. Its native range in Canada is east of the Rocky Mountains from the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, and the north-central and ...

. They belong to the genus ''

Tricholoma ''Tricholoma'' is a genus of fungus that contains many fairly fleshy white-spored gilled mushrooms which are found worldwide generally growing in woodlands. These are ectomycorrhizal fungi, existing in a symbiotic relationship with various s ...

'', which includes the closely related

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both Geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The modern State (polity), states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. ...

n songi or

matsutake , ''Tricholoma matsutake'', is a species of choice edible mycorrhizal mushroom that grows in East Asia, Europe, and North America. It is prized in Japanese cuisine for its distinct spicy-aromatic odor. Etymology The common name and specifi ...

as well as the Western matsutake ('' T. murrillianum'') and Meso-American matsutake (''Tricholoma mesoamericanum''). ''T. magnivelare'' is also known as the ponderosa mushroom, pine mushroom, American matsutake.

Species designation

Until recently, ''Tricholoma magnivelare'' was the name used to describe all matsutake mushrooms found growing in North America. Since the early 2000s, molecular data has indicated the presence of separate species previously grouped within ''T. magnivelare.'' Only those found in the Eastern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

have retained the ''T. magnivelare'' name.

Description

The cap ranges from in width, and is white with reddish-yellow or brown spots. The stalk is tall and 2–6 cm wide. The spores are white. The

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 substrates. A typical single spore germinates ...

is thought to be parasitized by the plant '' Allotropa virgata'', which primarily feeds on

Edibility

While tough, the mushroom can be eaten both raw and cooked and is considered choice. In recent years, globalization and wider social acceptability of

mushroom hunting 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 ...

has made collection of pine mushrooms widely popular in North America. Local mushroom hunters sell their harvest daily to local depots, which rush them to airports. The mushrooms are then shipped fresh by air to

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

where demand is high and prices are at a premium.The American Matsutake: ''Tricholoma magnivelare''
Mushroom Expert. Accessed March 23, 2012. Serious poisonings have resulted from confusion of this mushroom with poisonous white ''

Amanita The genus ''Amanita'' contains about 600 species of agarics, including some of the most toxic known mushrooms found worldwide, as well as some well-regarded edible species. This genus is responsible for approximately 95% of the fatalities resul ...

'' species.

Similar species

Similar species in the genus include ''

Tricholoma apium ''Tricholoma apium'' is a mushroom of the agaric genus ''Tricholoma'' that is found in Europe. It is classified as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. See also * List of North American ''Tricholoma'' * List of ''Tricholoma'' ...

'', '' T. caligatum'', ''T. focale'', and '' T. vernaticum''. Other similar species include '' Catathelasma imperiale'', ''C. ventricosum'', '' Russula brevipes'', and the poisonous ''

Amanita smithiana ''Amanita smithiana'', also known as Smith's amanita, is a species of agaric found on soil in coniferous (''Abies'', ''Tsuga'', ''Pseudotsuga'') and broadleaved (''Alnus'', ''Quercus'') woodland in the Pacific Northwest of North America. It frui ...

''.

References

External links

Mushroom-Collecting.com - Matsutake
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7840804 magnivelare Edible fungi Fungi described in 1873 Fungi of North America Taxa named by Charles Horton Peck