Julius Schäffer (3 June 188221 October 1944) was a German

mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their taxonomy, genetics, biochemical properties, and use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, food, traditional medicine, as well as entheogens, poison, and ...

. His contributions include studies on the

Agaricales The Agaricales are an order (biology), order of fungi in the division (mycology), division Basidiomycota. As originally conceived, the order contained all the agarics (gilled mushrooms), but subsequent research has shown that not all agarics are ...

(gilled mushrooms), especially the genus ''

Russula ''Russula'' is a very large genus composed of around 750 worldwide species of fungi. The genus was described by Christian Hendrik Persoon in 1796. The mushrooms are fairly large, and brightly colored – making them one of the most recognizable ...

'', about which he wrote a

monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...

in 1933. and issued the

exsiccata Exsiccata (Latin, ''gen.'' -ae, ''plur.'' -ae) is a work with "published, uniform, numbered set of preserved specimens distributed with printed labels". Typically, exsiccatae are numbered collections of dried herbarium Biological specimen, spe ...

''Russulae exsiccatae a Jul. Schaeffer in Annal. Mycolog. vol. 31 & 32 (Russula-Monographie) descriptae''. Later, he revised the genus in the series ''Die Pilze Mitteleuropas'' (1926–1967); his notes were published posthumously by his wife Liesel in 1952 with the help of other mycologists. The work was considered the "authoritative treatment of the group for Central Europe". One of the ''Russula'' species that was first described in this publication was '' R. laeta''. Schäffer developed a

chemical test In chemistry, a chemical test is a qualitative property, qualitative or Quantitative property, quantitative procedure designed to identify, quantify, or characterise a chemical compound or substituent, chemical group. Purposes Chemical testing m ...

to help with the identification of ''

Agaricus ''Agaricus'' is a genus of mushroom-forming fungi containing both edible and poisonous species, with over 400 members worldwide and possibly again as many disputed or newly discovered species. The genus includes the common ("button") mushroom ...

'' species. A positive reaction of Schaeffer's test, which uses the reaction of

aniline Aniline (From , meaning ' indigo shrub', and ''-ine'' indicating a derived substance) is an organic compound with the formula . Consisting of a phenyl group () attached to an amino group (), aniline is the simplest aromatic amine. It is an in ...

and

nitric acid Nitric acid is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly corrosive mineral acid. The compound is colorless, but samples tend to acquire a yellow cast over time due to decomposition into nitrogen oxide, oxides of nitrogen. Most com ...

on the surface of the mushroom, is indicated by an orange to red color; it is characteristic of species in the

section Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

''Flavescentes''. The compounds responsible for the reaction were named schaefferal A and B to honor Schäffer. Schäffer is the only mycologist of modern times known to have died from consuming

poisonous mushroom Mushroom poisoning is poisoning resulting from the ingestion of mushrooms that contain toxic substances. Symptoms can vary from slight gastrointestinal discomfort to death in about 10 days. Mushroom toxins are secondary metabolites produced by th ...

s, in this case, ''

Paxillus involutus ''Paxillus involutus'', also known as the brown roll-rim or the common roll-rim, is a species of basidiomycete fungus. Although it has lamella (mycology), gills, it is more closely related to the pored boletes than to typical gilled mushroom ...

''. About an hour after he and his wife had eaten a meal prepared with the mushrooms, Schäffer developed vomiting, diarrhea, and fever. His condition worsened to the point where he was admitted to hospital the following day, and subsequently developed

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as renal failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney fa ...

, perishing after 17 days.

Eponymous taxa

Several species have been named in honor of Schaeffer: *''Agaricus schaefferianus'' Hlavácek 1987 **now '' Agaricus urinascens'' (Jul. Schäff. & F.H. Møller) Singer 1951 *''

Cortinarius schaefferanus ''Cortinarius'' is a globally distributed genus of fungus in the family Cortinariaceae. Its members are commonly known by the names cortinar and webcap. It is suspected to be the largest genus of agarics, containing over 2,000 widespread specie ...

'' ( M.M. Moser) M.M. Moser 1967 *'' Russula nauseosa'' var. ''schaefferi'' Kill. 1939 *'' Russula schaefferi'' Kärcher 1996 *'' Russula schaefferiana'' Niolle 1943 *'' Russula schaefferina'' Rawla & Sarwal 1983

Selected publications

*Schäffer, J. (1947). "Beobachtungen an Oberbayerischen Blätterpilzen". ''Berichte der bayerischen botanischen Gesellschaft'' 27: 201–225.

References

External links

Collection of 82 coloured drawings of ''Russula''
–

Natural History Museum, London The Natural History Museum in London is a museum that exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history. It is one of three major museums on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, the others being the Science Museum (Lo ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schaffer, Julius German mycologists 1882 births 1944 deaths Deaths from foodborne illnesses Accidental deaths in Germany