Clavarioid fungi

Last updated December 30, 2024

The clavarioid fungi are a group of fungi in the Basidiomycota typically having erect, simple or branched basidiocarps (fruit bodies) that are formed on the ground, on decaying vegetation, or on dead wood. They are colloquially called club fungi and coral fungi.

Originally such fungi were referred to the genus Clavaria ("clavarioid" means Clavaria-like), but it is now known that clavarioid species are not all closely related. Since they are often studied as a group, it is convenient to retain the informal (non-taxonomic) name of "clavarioid fungi" and this term is frequently used in research papers.

History

Clavaria was one of the original genera created by Linnaeus in his Species Plantarum of 1753. It contained all species of fungi with erect, club-shaped or branched (coral-like) fruit bodies, including many that are now referred to the Ascomycota. Subsequent authors described over 1200 species in the genus.^[1] With increasing use of the microscope in the late nineteenth century, most of the ascomycetous members of the genus were recognized as distinct and moved to other genera. Clavaria was still used for the majority of the basidiomycetous species until Donk reviewed Dutch species in 1933 (introducing the genera Clavariadelphus , Ramariopsis , and Ramaria in its modern sense)^[2] and Corner published his world monograph in 1950, introducing most of the remaining modern genera.^[3] DNA sequencing has since confirmed the diversity of the clavarioid fungi, not only placing species in different genera, but also in different families and orders.^[4]^[5]

Description and genera

Most clavarioid fungi have simple or branched fruit bodies that are erect (or pendant from wood in the genus Deflexula ). The spores are born on the sides of the clubs or branches and the spore-bearing surface is typically smooth or ridged, occasionally warted to weakly spiny.

The largest current genus is Ramaria, which has species with branched fruit bodies and ochre to brownish spores. Clavariadelphus, producing large, club-shaped fruit bodies, is closely related.^[5]Clavaria in its modern sense is restricted to white-spored species, many simple, some branched. It is not clearly distinguished from two related genera, Clavulinopsis and Ramariopsis.^[4] The genus Typhula contains a number of small, sometimes minute species with simple fruit bodies. Smaller genera of clavarioid fungi include Alloclavaria , Aphelaria , Artomyces , Chaetotyphula , Clavariachaete , Clavicorona , Clavulina , Ertzia , Lachnocladium , Lentaria , Lepidostroma , Multiclavula , Pterula , Scytinopogon , and Sulzbacheromyces .

Habitat and distribution

Many clavarioid fungi are saprotrophic with a terrestrial habit, growing in woodland leaf litter or in mossy grassland. A few grow on wood or on decaying herbaceous stems and fallen leaves. Some species, particularly in the genera Clavulina and Ramaria, are known to be ectomycorrhizal (forming a beneficial association with the roots of living trees). Species in the genera Ertzia, Multiclavula, Lepidostroma, and Sulzbacheromyces are lichenized and grow in association with algae. Species of the Ramaria subgenus Ramaria are ectomycorrhizal.

Clavarioid fungi have a worldwide distribution, though some genera—such as Aphelaria and Lachnocladium—are principally tropical.

Related Research Articles

The Cantharellales are an order of fungi in the class Agaricomycetes. The order includes not only the chanterelles (Cantharellaceae), but also some of the tooth fungi (Hydnaceae), clavarioid fungi, and corticioid fungi (Botryobasidiaceae). Species within the order are variously ectomycorrhizal, saprotrophic, associated with orchids, or facultative plant pathogens. Those of economic importance include edible and commercially collected Cantharellus, Craterellus, and Hydnum species as well as crop pathogens in the genera Ceratobasidium and Thanatephorus/Rhizoctonia.

The Hymenochaetales are an order of fungi in the class Agaricomycetes. The order in its current sense is based on molecular research and not on any unifying morphological characteristics. According to one 2008 estimate, the Hymenochaetales contain around 600 species worldwide, mostly corticioid fungi and poroid fungi, but also including several clavarioid fungi and agarics. Species of economic importance include wood decay fungi in the genera Phellinus and Inonotus sensu lato, some of which may cause losses in forestry. Therapeutic properties are claimed for Inonotus obliquus ("chaga") and Phellinus linteus, both of which are now commercially marketed.

The Clavariaceae are a family of fungi in the order Agaricales. Originally the family contained most of the clavarioid fungi, but in its current sense is more restricted, albeit with a greater diversity of basidiocarp forms. Basidiocarps are variously clavarioid or agaricoid (mushroom-shaped), less commonly corticioid or hydnoid.

The Clavulinaceae are a family of fungi in the order Cantharellales. The family is not well defined, but currently comprises species of clavarioid fungi as well as some corticioid fungi. These species are nutritionally diverse, some being ectomycorrhizal, others wood-rotting saprotrophs, others lichenized, and yet others lichenicolous.

Basidiolichens are lichenized members of the division Basidiomycota within the subkingdom Dikarya of the kingdom Fungi. They form a diverse yet much smaller group of lichens than the far more common ascolichens of the division Ascomycota. Owing to how few described species there are, basidiolichens are generally considered to be poorly researched, and few studies that characterize their natural products exist. Biogeographically, basidiolichen species may be distributed in a cosmopolitan manner or more regionally, ranging from arctic and montane habitats to more temperate and tropical environments. Morphologically, basidiocarp and thallus structures may vary widely within and between basidiolichen genera.

Ramariopsis is a genus of coral fungi in the family Clavariaceae. The genus has a collectively widespread distribution and contains about 40 species. The name means 'having the appearance of Ramaria'.

Ramariopsis kunzei is an edible species of coral fungi in the family Clavariaceae, and the type species of the genus Ramariopsis. It is commonly known as white coral because of the branched structure of the fruit bodies that resemble marine coral. The fruit bodies are up to 5 cm (2.0 in) tall by 4 cm (1.6 in) wide, with numerous branches originating from a short rudimentary stem. The branches are one to two millimeters thick, smooth, and white, sometimes with yellowish tips in age. Ramariopsis kunzei has a widespread distribution, and is found in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.

Ramaria botrytis, commonly known as the clustered coral, the pink-tipped coral mushroom, or the cauliflower coral, is an edible species of coral fungus in the family Gomphaceae. Its robust fruit body can grow up to 15 cm (6 in) in diameter and 20 cm (8 in) tall, and resembles some marine coral. Its dense branches, which originate from a stout, massive base, are swollen at the tips and divided into several small branchlets. The branches are initially whitish but age to buff or tan, with tips that are pink to reddish. The flesh is thick and white. The spores, yellowish in deposit, are ellipsoid, feature longitudinal striations, and measure about 13.8 by 4.7 micrometers.

Clavaria is a genus of fungi in the family Clavariaceae. Species of Clavaria produce basidiocarps that are either cylindrical to club-shaped or branched and coral-like. They are often grouped with similar-looking species from other genera, when they are collectively known as the clavarioid fungi. All Clavaria species are terrestrial and most are believed to be saprotrophic. In Europe, they are typical of old, mossy, unimproved grassland. In North America and elsewhere, they are more commonly found in woodlands.

Clavaria zollingeri, commonly known as the violet coral or the magenta coral, is a widely distributed species of fungus. It produces striking tubular, purple to pinkish-violet fruit bodies that grow up to 10 cm (3.9 in) tall and 7 cm (2.8 in) wide. The extreme tips of the fragile, slender branches are usually rounded and brownish. A typical member of the clavarioid or club fungi, Clavaria zollingeri is saprobic, and so derives nutrients by breaking down organic matter. The fruit bodies are typically found growing on the ground in woodland litter, or in grasslands. Variations in branching and color can often be used to distinguish C. zollingeri from similarly colored coral fungi such as Alloclavaria purpurea and Clavulina amethystina, although microscopy is required to reliably identify the latter species.

Multiclavula is a genus of basidiolichens in the family Hydnaceae. The widespread genus contains 14 species. The genus was circumscribed by the American mycologist Ron Petersen in 1967, with Multiclavula corynoides assigned as the type species.

Phaeoclavulina abietina, commonly known as the green-staining coral, is a coral mushroom in the family Gomphaceae. It is characterized by the green staining reaction it develops in response to bruising or injury.

Clavulinopsis umbrinella, commonly known as the beige coral, is a coral mushroom in the family Clavariaceae. Fruit bodies are initially white before turning pale brown with darker brown tips. Originally described in 1860, it is known to occur in Europe and North America where it grows in grass. It is not a common species.

Ramaria subbotrytis is a species of coral fungus in the family Gomphaceae. It was previously classified in the family Ramariaceae, and before that in the genus Clavaria, family Clavariaceae. It was originally described as Clavaria subbotrytis by William Chambers Coker in 1923 from collections made in North Carolina. E.J.H. Corner transferred it to the genus Ramaria in 1950.

Clavulinopsis helvola is a clavarioid fungus in the family Clavariaceae. In the UK, it has the recommended English name of yellow club. It forms slender, cylindrical, yellow fruiting bodies that grow on the ground in agriculturally unimproved grassland or in woodland litter. It was originally described from Europe.

Lepidostromatales is an order of fungi in the class Agaricomycetes. It is the only known order of basidiomycete fungi composed entirely of lichenized members. Morphologically, the fruiting bodies of all species are clavarioid. Six species are known, five of which were described within the span of 2007–2013. Due to its morphological similarity to the genus Multiclavula, its isolated phylogenetic position was not understood until quite recently. The photobionts that have been found in association with members of this group are not known to associate with any other types of lichenized fungi.

Ertzia is a monospecific genus in the family Lepidostromataceae. The sole species is Ertzia akagerae, a basidiolichen. The genus was circumscribed in 2014 by Brendan Hodkinson and Robert Lücking. Ertzia is distinguished from all other lichenized clavarioid fungi by having a microsquamulose thallus that forms contiguous glomerules with a cortex of jigsaw puzzle-shaped cells. Ertzia akagerae grows on soil in the African tropics.

Clavulinopsis corniculata is a clavarioid fungus in the family Clavariaceae. In the UK, it has the recommended English name of meadow coral. It forms branched, cylindrical, ochre fruit bodies that grow on the ground in agriculturally unimproved grassland or in woodland litter. It was originally described from Germany and is part of a species complex as yet unresolved.

Multiclavula mucida is a globally distributed species of basidiolichen belonging to the family Hydnaceae. Since its initial classification by Christiaan Hendrik Persoon in 1797, the species has been described under various synonyms and associated with multiple genera. Persoon described its fruiting bodies as gregarious, varying from simple to branching structures, predominantly whitish in colour with yellow to brownish tips. He also noted its frequent appearance in autumn on decaying, moist wood, often covered with a greenish crust necessary for its growth.

Sulzbacheromyces fossicola is a species of basidiolichen in the family Lepidostromataceae. First described in 1950 by E. J. H. Corner as Clavaria fossicola, it is characterised by its dark green to indigo blue crusty growth form and distinctive white, club-shaped fruiting bodies that turn beige when dried. The species forms a thin layer on soil or rocks, where it lives in symbiosis with microscopic green algae. It is distributed across tropical and subtropical Asia, from India to Singapore, where it specifically grows on exposed yellow and red clay soils in shaded locations. The species was transferred to Sulzbacheromyces in 2017 based on molecular and morphological evidence.

References

↑ "Index Fungorum – Search Page".
↑ Donk MA. (1933). Revision der Niederländischen Homobasidiomycetae-Aphyllophoraceae. Amsterdam: Rijks Universiteit te Utrecht.
↑ Corner EJH. (1950). A monograph of Clavaria and allied genera. Cambridge: University Press.
1 2 Dentinger, B. T. M.; McLaughlin, D. J. (2006). "Reconstructing the Clavariaceae using nuclear large subunit rDNA sequences and a new genus segregated from Clavaria". Mycologia. 98 (5): 746–762. doi:10.3852/mycologia.98.5.746. PMID 17256578.
1 2 Humpert AJ. et al. (2001). Molecular phylogenetics of Ramaria and related genera: evidence from nuclear large subunit and mitochondrial small subunit rDNA sequences. Mycologia93: 465–477.

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[1] "Index Fungorum – Search Page".

[2] Donk MA. (1933). Revision der Niederländischen Homobasidiomycetae-Aphyllophoraceae. Amsterdam: Rijks Universiteit te Utrecht.

[3] Corner EJH. (1950). A monograph of Clavaria and allied genera. Cambridge: University Press.

[Dent-4] 1 2 Dentinger, B. T. M.; McLaughlin, D. J. (2006). "Reconstructing the Clavariaceae using nuclear large subunit rDNA sequences and a new genus segregated from Clavaria". Mycologia. 98 (5): 746–762. doi:10.3852/mycologia.98.5.746. PMID 17256578.

[Humpert-5] 1 2 Humpert AJ. et al. (2001). Molecular phylogenetics of Ramaria and related genera: evidence from nuclear large subunit and mitochondrial small subunit rDNA sequences. Mycologia93: 465–477.

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