A snowbank fungus is any one of a number of diverse species of

fungi 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 ...

that occur adjacent to or within melting snow. They are most commonly found in the mountains of western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

where a deep

snowpack Snowpack forms from layers of snow that accumulate in geographic regions and high elevations where the climate includes cold weather for extended periods during the year. Snowpacks are an important water resource that feed streams and rivers as th ...

accumulates during the winter and slowly melts through the spring and summer, often shaded by

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 ...

ous forest. They may be

saprotroph 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 ...

ic,

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 ...

, or in the case of ''

Caloscypha fulgens ''Caloscypha'' is a fungal genus in the family Caloscyphaceae (order Pezizales). A monotypic genus, it contains the single species ''Caloscypha fulgens'', commonly known as the spring orange peel fungus, the golden cup, or the dazzling cup. It ...

'',

pathogen In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ ...

ic.

History

William Bridge Cooke William Bridge Cooke (July 16, 1908 – December 30, 1991) was an American mycologist. He specialized in fungal ecology and taxonomy, with on emphasis on the Polyporaceae. He was the author of at least 192 publications and five books. Cooke also pub ...

was the first to discuss the snowbank fungi as a distinct ecological group in 1944 when he discussed the fungal flora of

Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascades ...

in California. He followed this with another publication 11 years later. In his 1975 book ''A Field Guide to Western Mushrooms'',

Alexander H. Smith Alexander Hanchett Smith (December 12, 1904 – December 12, 1986) was an American mycologist known for his extensive contributions to the taxonomy and phylogeny of the higher fungi, especially the agarics. Early life Smith, born in Crandon, Wis ...

discussed what he called the "snowbank flora", noting "It seems obvious to me that the species in this group are well established throughout the forest zone, and have adjusted to this fruiting pattern, possibly as a response to the habitat drying out and warming up as summer progresses."

Species

Snowbank fungi include members of the

Basidiomycota Basidiomycota () is one of two large divisions that, together with the Ascomycota, constitute the subkingdom Dikarya (often referred to as the "higher fungi") within the kingdom Fungi. Members are known as basidiomycetes. More specifically, Basi ...

and the

Ascomycota Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The def ...

Mycorrhiza 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 plant ...

l basidiomycetes include '' Cortinarius ahsii'', '' C. auchmerus'', '' C. clandestinus'', '' C. croceus'', and some others that are provisionally named, as well as the

gasteroid The gasteroid fungi are a group of fungi in the Basidiomycota. Species were formerly placed in the obsolete class Gasteromycetes Fr. (literally "stomach fungi"), or the equally obsolete order Gasteromycetales Rea, because they produce spores ins ...

species ''

Pholiota nubigena ''Pholiota nubigena'', commonly known as the gastroid pholiota or the bubble gum fungus, is a species of secotioid fungus in the family Strophariaceae. It is found in mountainous areas of the western United States, where it grows on rotting con ...

''. White-spored species include the saprobes '' Clitocybe albirhiza'', '' C. glacialis'', '' Lentinellus montanus'' (formerly ''

Lyophyllum ''Lyophyllum'' is a genus of about 40 species of fungi, widespread in north 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 ...

''), ''

Mycena overholtsii ''Mycena overholtsii'', commonly known as the snowbank fairy helmet or fuzzy foot, is a species of fungus in the family Mycenaceae. The mushrooms produced by the fungus are relatively large for the genus ''Mycena'', with convex grayish caps up ...

'', and the conifer

cone A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex. A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines con ...

decomposers '' Strobilurus albipilatus'' and '' S. occidentalis''. Also white spored, '' H. goetzii'', '' H. marzuolus'', and '' H. subalpinus'' are believed to be (or suspected to be) mycorrhizal with conifers. The ecological preferences of '' Melanoleuca angelesiana'' and '' Pseudoomphalina angelesiana'' are unknown. Non-gilled basidiomycetes include '' Pycnoporellus alboluteus'' and '' Tyromyces leucospongia''. Ascomycete snowbank fungi include the decomposers ''

Discina perlata ''Discina perlata'', commonly known as pig's ears is a brown to tannish, wrinkled, cup- or ear-shaped fungus, sometimes with short, stout stalk. The spores of ''D. perlata'' are quite similar to those of mushrooms in the genus ''Gyromitra'' ...

'', ''

Gyromitra montana ''Gyromitra gigas'', commonly known as the giants false morel, snow morel, snow false morel, calf brain, or bull nose, is a fungus and a member of the Ascomycota. ''G. gigas'' is found in Europe. It is referred to as one of the false mor ...

'', '' Sarcosoma latahense'', and '' Plectania nannfeldtii''. '' Urnula mexicana'' is suspected to be mycorrhizal with

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

, while ''

'' is a seed pathogen of ''

Picea A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

''.

Habitat and distribution

In North America, snowbank fungi range from northern

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

north to southern Canada, at elevations from . They are common in 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 ...

, the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

, and other high-elevation areas with short, cold summers. Fruit bodies of snowbank fungi tend to be more prevalent on north-facing slopes and shaded areas. Trees typically found near snowbank fungi include

Engelmann spruce ''Picea engelmannii'', with the common names Engelmann spruce, white spruce, mountain spruce, and silver spruce, is a species of spruce native to western North America. It is mostly a high-altitude mountain tree but also appears in watered canyon ...

(''Picea engelmannii''),

subalpine fir ''Abies lasiocarpa'', the subalpine fir or Rocky Mountain fir, is a western North American fir tree. Description ''Abies lasiocarpa'' is a medium-sized evergreen conifer with a very narrow conic crown, growing to tall, exceptionally , with a ...

(''Abies lasiocarpa''), and

lodgepole pine ''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpine, ...

(''Pinus contorta ''), and

whitebark pine ''Pinus albicaulis'', known by the common names whitebark pine, white bark pine, white pine, pitch pine, scrub pine, and creeping pine, is a conifer tree native to the mountains of the western United States and Canada, specifically subalpine ...

(''Pinus albicaulis''), all of which can provide sufficient shade to prevent fast snowmelt. Several species are

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 elsew ...

to western North America, and the phenomenon appears to be restricted to this part of the world. They are not associated with other cold environments, such as arctic or alpine habitats, or with

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

References

{{reflist, colwidth=30em, refs= {{cite journal , author=Cooke WB , title=Notes on the ecology of the fungi of Mount Shasta , journal=American Midland Naturalist , year=1944 , volume=31 , pages=237–49 , doi=10.2307/2421394, jstor=2421394 {{cite journal , author=Cooke WB , title=Subalpine fungi and snowbanks , journal=Ecology , year=1955 , volume=36 , issue=1 , pages=124–30 , doi=10.2307/1931437, jstor=1931437 {{cite journal , author=Cripps C. , title=Snowbank Fungi Revisited , journal=Fungi , volume=2 , issue=1 , date=Spring 2009 , pages=47–53 , url=http://www.fungimag.com/spring-09-articles/13_Snow.pdf , format=PDF {{cite book , author=Moser M. , editor-last=Cripps CL, title=Fungi in Forest Ecosystems: Systematics, Diversity, and Ecology , publisher=New York Botanical Garden Press , location=Bronx , year=2004 , pages=151–8 , chapter= Subalpine conifer forests in the Alps, the Altai, and the Rocky Mountains: a comparison of their fungal populations , isbn=978-0-89327-459-7 {{cite journal , vauthors=Redhead SA, Ammirati J, Norvell L, Seidl M , title=Notes on western North American snowbank fungi , journal=Mycotaxon , year=2000 , volume=76 , pages=321–8 , url=http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/cyberliber/59575/0076/0321.htm {{cite book , author=Smith AH , title=A Field Guide to Western Mushrooms , publisher=University of Michigan Press, location=Ann Arbor, Michigan , year=1975 , pages=16–7 , isbn=0-472-85599-9 Mushroom types