Puffballs are a type of fungus featuring a ball-shaped fruit body that bursts on contact or impact, releasing a cloud of dust-like spores into the surrounding area. Puffballs belong to the division Basidiomycota and encompass several genera, including Calvatia, Calbovista and Lycoperdon. The puffballs were previously treated as a taxonomic group called the Gasteromycetes or Gasteromycetidae, but they are now known to be a polyphyletic assemblage.
Edible mushrooms are the fleshy fruit bodies of several species of macrofungi. Edibility may be defined by criteria including the absence of poisonous effects on humans and desirable taste and aroma. Mushrooms that have a particularly desirable taste are described as "choice". Edible mushrooms are consumed for their nutritional and culinary value. Mushrooms, especially dried shiitake, are sources of umami flavor.
A truffle is the fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, predominantly one of the many species of the genus Tuber. In addition to Tuber, over one hundred other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including Geopora, Peziza, Choiromyces, and Leucangium. These genera belong to the class Pezizomycetes and the Pezizales order. Several truffle-like basidiomycetes are excluded from Pezizales, including Rhizopogon and Glomus. Truffles are ectomycorrhizal fungi, so they are usually found in close association with tree roots. Spore dispersal is accomplished through fungivores, animals that eat fungi. These fungi have significant ecological roles in nutrient cycling and drought tolerance.
The Discinaceae are a family of ascomycete fungi, the best known members of which are the false morels of the genus Gyromitra. Originally erected by Erich Heinz Benedix in 1961, it was found to be a discrete clade in a molecular study of ribosomal DNA by mycologist Kerry O'Donnell in 1997. As of 2008, the family is thought to contain 5 genera and 58 species. As of 2022, the GBIF accepts Discina(Fr.) Fr., Gymnohydnotrya B.C.Zhang & Minter, 1989, GyromitraFr., 1849, HydnotryaBerk. & Broome and Maublancomyces. But calls NeogyromitraS.Imai and PseudorhizinaJacz. doubtful.
Genea is a genus of truffle-like fungi in the family Pyronemataceae. There are about 32 species in the genus that occur in North America and Europe. The genus was circumscribed by Italian mycologist Carlo Vittadini in 1831.
Sarcosphaera is a fungal genus within the Pezizaceae family. It is a monotypic genus, containing the single species Sarcosphaera coronaria, commonly known as the pink crown, the violet crown-cup, or the violet star cup. Although several taxa have been described as Sarcosphaera species since the introduction of the genus in 1869, most lack modern descriptions, have been transferred to the related genus Peziza, or are considered synonymous with S. coronaria.
A false truffle or a hymenogastrale is any species of fungus that has underground fruiting bodies that produce basidiocarps resembling the true truffles of genus Tuber. While rodents such as squirrels eat a wide variety of false truffle species, many are considered toxic or otherwise unpalatable and only a few are sought after as food for humans.
Tuber oregonense, commonly known as the Oregon white truffle, is a species of edible truffle in the genus Tuber. Described as new to science in 2010, the North American species is found on the western coast of the United States, from northern California to southern British Columbia west of the Cascade Range. A mycorrhizal fungus, it grows in a symbiotic association with Douglas fir. It overlaps in distribution with the closely related T. gibbosum, but they have different growing seasons: T. oregonense typically appears from October through March, while T. gibbosum grows from January to June. The fruit bodies of the fungus are roughly spherical to irregular in shape, and resemble small potatoes up to 5 cm (2 in) in diameter. Inside the truffle is the gleba, which is initially white before it becomes a marbled tan color. The large, often thick-walled, and strongly ornamented spores are produced in large spherical asci. The truffle is highly prized for its taste and aroma. Some individuals have claimed success in cultivating the truffles in Christmas tree farms.
Kalapuya brunnea is a species of truffle in the monotypic fungal genus Kalapuya. The truffle occurs only in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, in western Oregon and northern California. Known locally as the Oregon brown truffle, it was formerly thought to be an undescribed species of Leucangium until molecular analysis demonstrated that it was distinct from that genus. The truffle is reddish brown with a rough and warty outer skin, while the interior spore-producing gleba is initially whitish before developing greyish-brown mottling as it matures. Mature truffles have an odor resembling garlicky cheese, similar to mature Camembert. The species has been harvested for culinary purposes in Oregon.
Tuber sinoexcavatum is a species of truffle in the family Tuberaceae. Described as a new species in 2011, it is found in China. The pale yellowish-brown to brown truffles measure up to 3 cm (1.2 in) in diameter. The species is named for its close resemblance to the common European truffle T. excavatum.
Tuber anniae is a species of truffle in the genus Tuber. The truffle is purported to be uncommon, but is primarily found in the United States Pacific Northwest. Recently the fruiting of closely related taxa have been found in the Baltic Rim countries, primarily forests dominated by Scots pine in eastern Finland.
Tuber melanosporum, called the black truffle,Périgord truffle or French black truffle, is a species of truffle native to Southern Europe. It is one of the most expensive edible fungi in the world. In 2013, the truffle cost between 1,000 and 2,000 euros per kilogram.
Tuber donnagotto is a species of truffle in the family Tuberaceae. Described as a new species in 2012, it is found in Croatia. The black truffle measures 2–7 cm (0.8–2.8 in) in diameter.
Helen Margaret Gilkey (1886–1972) was an American mycologist and botanist, as well as a botanical illustrator and watercolor artist She was born on March 6, 1886, in Montesano, Washington, and moved to Corvallis, Oregon, with her family in 1903. She died in 1972 at the age of 86.
James Martin Trappe is a mycologist and expert in the field of North American truffle species. He has authored or co-authored 450 scientific papers and written three books on the subject. MycoBank lists him as either author or co-author of 401 individual species, and over the course of his career he has helped guide research on mycorrhizal fungi, and reshaped truffle taxonomy: establishing a new order, two new families, and 40 individual genera.
Leucangium carthusianum is a species of ascomycete fungus. It is commonly known as the Oregon black truffle. It is found in the Pacific Northwest region of North America, where it grows in an ectomycorrhizal association with Douglas-fir. It is commercially collected, usually assisted by a specially trained truffle dog. Mature fruiting bodies can be dug up mostly during winter, but the season can extend from September through April.
Tuber borchii, known as the whitish truffle or bianchetto truffle, is a small, common species of edible truffle excellent for use in cuisine.
Carbomyces emergens is a desert truffle in the genus Carbomyces, a small genus common to the Chihuahuan desert in the southwestern United States and Mexico. C. emergens is regarded as the most common and widely distributed species in Carbomyces, also serving as the genus' type species. C. emergens belongs to the Carbomycetaceae family, in the order Pezizales, class Pezizomycetes, division Ascomycota.
Paurocotylis pila is a saprobic, truffle-like ascomycete from the genus Paurocotylis. It is native to New Zealand and Australia and is naturalised in the United Kingdom.
