Sclerodermatineae is a

suborder Order ( la, ordo) is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and ...

of the

fungal 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 ...

order

Boletales The Boletales are an order of Agaricomycetes containing over 1300 species with a diverse array of fruiting body types. The boletes are the best known members of this group, and until recently, the Boletales were thought to only contain boletes ...

. Circumscribed in 2002 by mycologists Manfred Binder and Andreas Bresinsky, it contains nine

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial ...

and about 80 species. The suborder contains a diverse assemblage

fruit body In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particul ...

morphologies, including

bolete {{refimprove, date=July 2020 A bolete is a type of mushroom, or fungal fruiting body. It can be identified thanks to a unique mushroom cap. The cap is clearly different from the stem. On the underside of the cap there is usually a spongy su ...

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 in ...

forms, earthstars (genus ''

Astraeus In Greek mythology, Astraeus () or Astraios (Ancient Greek: Ἀστραῖος means "starry"') was an astrological deity. Some also associate him with the winds, as he is the father of the four Anemoi (wind deities), by his wife, Eos. Etymo ...

''), and

puffball Puffballs are a type of fungus featuring a ball-shaped fruit body that bursts on impact, releasing a cloud of dust-like spores when mature. Puffballs belong to the division Basidiomycota and encompass several genera, including '' Calvatia'', '' ...

s. Most species are

ectomycorrhiza An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycob ...

l, although the ecological role of some species is not known with certainty. The suborder is thought to have originated in the late

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

(145–66 Ma) in Asia and North America, and the major genera diversified around the mid

Cenozoic The Cenozoic ( ; ) is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterised by the dominance of mammals, birds and flowering plants, a cooling and drying climate, and the current configu ...

(66–0 Ma).

Taxonomy

The Sclerodermatineae was first legitimately used by Manfred Binder and Andreas Bresinsky in 2002 based on

molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bioch ...

analyses of nuclear ribosomal large subunit (25S)

rRNA Ribosomal ribonucleic acid (rRNA) is a type of non-coding RNA which is the primary component of ribosomes, essential to all cells. rRNA is a ribozyme which carries out protein synthesis in ribosomes. Ribosomal RNA is transcribed from riboso ...

sequences from 60 species of

. This research was an extension of Binder's 1999 graduate work, in which he argued for the need to recognize the molecular differences of the sclerodermatoid fungi. Sclerodermatineae is one of six lineages of the Boletales recognized as a suborder; the others are the

Boletineae The Boletineae are a suborder of the fungal order Boletales. Families in the Boletineae include the Boletaceae and the Paxillaceae. Taxa *Paxillaceae **''Alpova'' **''Austrogaster'' **'' Gyrodon'' **''Hydnomerulius'' **'' Meiorganum'' **'' Mel ...

, Paxillineae, Suillineae, Tapinellineae, and Coniophorineae. Of the nine genera assigned to the Sclerodermatineae, three are

hymenomycetes Hymenomycetes was formerly the largest taxonomic group of fungi within the division Basidiomycota, but the term is no longer taxonomically relevant. Many familiar fungi belong to this class, including bracket fungi and toadstools. This class cont ...

('' Boletinellus'', '' Gyroporus'', and ''

Phlebopus ''Phlebopus'' is a genus of fungi in the family Boletinellaceae (suborder Sclerodermatineae of the Boletales order). The genus has a widespread distribution in subtropical and pantropical regions, and contains 12 species. The species are saprob ...

''), and six are

(''

'', '' Calostoma'', '' Diplocystis'', ''

Pisolithus ''Pisolithus'' is a genus of fungi within the family Sclerodermataceae (suborder Sclerodermatineae). The type species, ''P. arenarius'', is now known to be synonymous with ''P. arhizus''. Species As accepted by Species Fungorum; *'' Pi ...

'', and ''

Scleroderma Scleroderma is a group of autoimmune diseases that may result in changes to the skin, blood vessels, muscles, and internal organs. The disease can be either localized to the skin or involve other organs, as well. Symptoms may include areas o ...

''). Since the suborder's original description, there have been several

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 ...

studies investigating the Sclerodermatineae. Some studies have revealed the existence of numerous

cryptic species In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

and have contributed to

taxonomic Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. A ...

expansion of the group. The "core" Sclerodermatineae include the genera ''Astraeus'', ''Calostoma'', ''Scleroderma'', ''Pisolithus'', ''Diplocystis'', ''Tremellogaster'' (all gasteroid), and the boletoid genus ''Gyroporus''; ''Phlebopus'' and ''Boletinellus'' resolved as

sister A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to ...

to this core group. As of 2012, there are an estimated 78 species in the Sclerodermatineae. The

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * Ty ...

of the suborder is 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 ...

Sclerodermataceae The Sclerodermataceae are a family of fungi in the order Boletales, containing several genera of unusual fungi that little resemble boletes. Taxa, which include species commonly known as the ‘hard-skinned puffballs’, ‘ earthballs’, or 'ea ...

; other families in the suborder are the

Boletinellaceae Boletinellaceae are a small family of mushroom-forming fungi, primarily characterized by small pores on the underside of the cap rather than gills. Though in the order Boletales, research shows they and Gyroporaceae are more closely related to ...

Diplocystaceae Diplocystaceae (alternatively spelled Diplocystidaceae or Diplocystidiaceae) is a family of fungi in the Boletales order. The family was described by mycologist Hanns Kreisel Hanns Kreisel (16 July 1931 – 18 January 2017) was a German mycologi ...

, and the Gyroporaceae. *

:*'' Boletinellus'' (2 species) :*''

'' (12 species) *

:*''

'' (5 species) :*'' Diplocystis'' (1 species) :*'' Endogonopsis'' (1 species) :*'' Tremellogaster'' (1 species) * Gyroporaceae :*'' Gyroporus'' (10 species) *

:*'' Calostoma'' (15 species) :*''

Chlorogaster ''Chlorogaster'' (literally '' green stomach'') is a genus of fungi thought to belong to the Sclerodermataceae family, but this has been not molecularly confirmed. A monotypic genus, it contains the single mycorrhizal species ''Chlorogaster dipte ...

'' (1 species) :*''

Favillea ''Favillea'' is a genus 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 class ...

'' (1 species) :*''

Horakiella ''Horakiella'' is a genus of fungi within the Sclerodermataceae family that contains the two species ''H.clelandii'' and ''H. watarrkana''. The genus name of ''Horakiella'' is in honour of Egon Horak (born 1937) is an Austrian mycologist. Th ...

'' (1 species) :*''

'' (5 species) :*''

'' (about 30 species)Kirk ''et al.'' (2008), p. 622 Based on

ancestral reconstruction Ancestral reconstruction (also known as ''Character Mapping'' or ''Character Optimization'') is the extrapolation back in time from measured characteristics of individuals (or populations) to their common ancestors. It is an important application ...

studies, the earliest (

basal Basal or basilar is a term meaning ''base'', ''bottom'', or ''minimum''. Science * Basal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features associated with the base of an organism or structure * Basal (medicine), a minimal level that is nec ...

) members of the Sclerodermatineae originated in the late

(145–66 Ma). The major genera diversified near the mid

(66–0 Ma). Asia and North America are the most probable ancestral areas for all Sclerodermatineae, and

Pinaceae The Pinaceae, or pine family, are conifer trees or shrubs, including many of the well-known conifers of commercial importance such as cedars, firs, hemlocks, larches, pines and spruces. The family is included in the order Pinales, formerly know ...

and angiosperms (primarily

rosids The rosids are members of a large clade (monophyletic group) of flowering plants, containing about 70,000 species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as ...

) are the most probable ancestral

hosts A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places *Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County People * Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman * Michel Host ...

Description

Members of the Sclerodermatineae have

shapes ranging from boletoid (with a

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

, stipe, and tubes on the underside of the cap) to

. Boletoid fruit bodies sometimes have hollow stipes with a surface that is smooth to somewhat furfuraceous (covered with flaky particles), and lack the reticulation (a net-like pattern of interlacing lines) characteristic of some members of the

Boletaceae The Boletaceae are a family of mushroom-forming fungi, primarily characterised by small pores on the spore-bearing hymenial surface (at the underside of the mushroom), instead of gills as are found in most agarics. Nearly as widely distributed ...

. The pores are

merulioid {{Short pages monitor