''Spinellus fusiger'', commonly known as the bonnet mold,
[ is a species of fungus in the Zygomycota phylum. It is a pin mold that is characterized by erect sporangiophores (specialized ]hypha
A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium.
Structure
A hypha consists of one or ...
e that bear a sporangium
A sporangium (; from Late Latin, ) is an enclosure in which spores are formed. It can be composed of a single cell or can be multicellular. Virtually all plants, fungi, and many other lineages form sporangia at some point in their life cy ...
) that are simple in structure, brown or yellowish-brown in color, and with branched aerial filaments that bear the zygospores. It grows as a parasitic mold on mushrooms, including several species from the genera '' Mycena'', including '' M. haematopus'', '' M. pura'', '' M. epipterygia'', '' M. leptocephala'', and various ''Collybia
''Collybia'' (in the strict sense) is a genus of mushrooms in the family Tricholomataceae. The genus has a widespread but rare distribution in northern temperate areas, and contains three species that grow on the decomposing remains of other mus ...
'' species, such as '' C. alkalivirens'', '' C. luteifolia'', '' C. dryophila'', and '' C. butyracea''.[ It has also been found growing on agaric species in '' Amanita'', '' Gymnopus'', and '']Hygrophorus
''Hygrophorus'' is a genus of agarics (gilled mushrooms) in the family Hygrophoraceae. Called "woodwaxes" in the UK or "waxy caps" (together with ''Hygrocybe'' species) in North America, basidiocarps (fruit bodies) are typically fleshy, often wi ...
''.[
]
Taxonomy
The species was first described by German naturalist Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg in 1818 as ''Mucor rhombosporus'', but he later conceded to making a mistake in examining the spores.[ Link later suggested the name ''Mucor fusiger'' for the species, and it has been known under a variety of names, such as ''Mucor macrocarpus'', ''Phycomyces agaricicola'', ''Spinellus macrocarpus'', and ''Spinellus rhombosporus''. It was assigned its current name by French botanist Philippe Édouard Léon Van Tieghem in 1875.][
]
Description
During the reproductive phase of its life cycle, ''Spinellus fusiger'' grows throughout the cap of the mushroom host, eventually breaking through to produce radiating reproductive stalks (sporangiophores) bearing minute, spherical, terminal spore-containing structures called sporangia. Ultimately, the spores in the sporangia are released after the breakdown of the outer sporangial wall, becoming passively dispersed to new locations via wind, water, and insects. The sporangia contain non- motile mitospores known as aplanospores.[ Like other ''Spinellus'' species, ''S. fusiger'' is homothallic, and sexual spores known as zygospores are produced following the union of branches called gametangia, that arise from the same mycelium.][
]
References
External links
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Fungi of Poland
Picture of spores
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7577537
Fungi described in 1824
Zygomycota
Taxa named by Johann Heinrich Friedrich Link