Morchella elata

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Morchella elata
Morchella elata Spitzmorchel Morchella conica.jpg
Black morel near Ulm, Germany
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Ascomycota
Class: Pezizomycetes
Order: Pezizales
Family: Morchellaceae
Genus: Morchella
Species:
M. elata
Binomial name
Morchella elata
Fr. (1822)
Morchella elata
Information icon.svg
Smooth icon.pngSmooth hymenium
Conical cap icon.svg Cap is conical
NA cap icon.svg Hymenium attachment is not applicable
Bare stipe icon.svg Stipe is bare
Mycomorphbox Edible.pngMycomorphbox Caution.pngEdibility is edible or can cause allergic reactions

Morchella elata is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae. It is one of many related species commonly known as black morels, and until 2012 the name M. elata was broadly applied to black morels throughout the globe. [1] [2] Like most members of the genus, M. elata is a popular edible fungus and is sought by many mushroom hunters.

Contents

Taxonomy and phylogeny

The fruit bodies of Morchella species, including M. elata, are highly polymorphic in appearance, exhibiting variations in shape, color and size; this has contributed to uncertainties regarding taxonomy. [3] Discriminating between the various species is complicated by uncertainty regarding which species are truly biologically distinct. Mushroom hunters refer to them by their color as the species are very similar in appearance and vary considerably within species and age of individual.

Early phylogenetic analyses supported the hypothesis that the genus comprises only a few species with considerable phenotypic variation. [4] [5] More recent DNA work, however, has revealed more than a dozen distinct groups of morels in North America, [6] and over 60 worldwide. [7] An extensive DNA study showed three discrete clades, or genetic groups, consisting of the black morels (Morchella elata and others), the yellow morels ( Morchella esculenta and others), and the white morels ( Morchella rufobrunnea and Morchella anatolica ). Species within the Elata clade (also referred to as Distantes), are characterised by the gradual darkening of their sterile ridges upon maturity, with the exception of Morchella tridentina (= Morchella frustrata ), which has persistently pale ridges. [8] Within the black and yellow clades, there are dozens of individual species, many endemic to individual continents or regions. [1] This species-rich view is supported by studies in North America, [1] Western Europe, [9] Turkey, [10] [11] Israel, [12] the Himalayas, [13] and China. [7]

The scientific name Morchella elata was proposed by Elias Magnus Fries from Sweden in 1822. [14] DNA analysis in 2011 has shown North American black morels to be largely distinct from European species, [1] therefore restricting the use of the M. elata name to Europe. In 2012, Kuo et al. provided names for many of the North American black morels that may have been referred to as M. elata in the past. [2] However, in a subsequent study by Richard et al. (2014) proposing a unified taxonomy for the genus, it is suggested that Fries' original description of Morchella elata may correspond to phylogenetic lineage Mel-10, which has been since described from North America as Morchella importuna , but later shown to have a widespread transcontinental distribution.

The variety M. elata var. purpurescens, characterised by the purple- or pink-colored tinges of its ascocarps, [15] is now considered to belong to a phylogenetically distinct lineage (Richard et al. 2014).

Description

Morchella asci viewed with phase contrast microscopy Morelasci.jpg
Morchella asci viewed with phase contrast microscopy

Morchella elata has operculate asci (i.e., asci opening by an apical lid to discharge the spores). It further has unicellular hyaline ascospores with polar oil droplets. [16]

Despite the fact that many interpretations of M. elata exist throughout the years, most authors agree that Fries' original concept refers to a species with dark, conical ascocarps and more or less parallel vertical ridges, with horizontal interconnecting ridges arranged in a "ladderlike" pattern. [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]

This is an edible species, although like other morels, some individuals may be allergic to it, so it must be cooked before being eaten. [22] It can also be dried for later use. [23] However, according to one field guide it may cause gastrointestinal disorder, and cannot easily be identified without a microscope. [24]

Ecology and distribution

Morchella elata var. purpurascens, Mount Parnitha Morkhela sten Parnetha.jpg
Morchella elata var. purpurascens, Mount Parnitha

Morchella elata fruits during spring on soil. Fries' original description, which was based on a collection from a fir wood in Sweden, reported it as rare: "In silvis abiegnis, praecipue locis humidis adustis, raro". However, since the true identity of M. elata is not yet fully clarified, its exact ecological preferences and distribution remain unclear.

Toxicity

Morels contain small amounts of hydrazine [25] toxins or an unknown toxin that are destroyed through cooking, (the presence of hydrazine is controversial since there are no primary references of hydrazine having been detected in the species), so morel mushrooms should never be eaten raw. [26] It has been reported that even cooked morels can sometimes cause mild intoxication symptoms when consumed with alcohol. [27]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Morchella</i> Genus of fungi

Morchella, the true morels, is a genus of edible sac fungi closely related to anatomically simpler cup fungi in the order Pezizales. These distinctive fungi have a honeycomb appearance due to the network of ridges with pits composing their caps. Morels are prized by gourmet cooks, particularly in Catalan and French cuisine, but can be toxic if consumed raw. Due to difficulties in cultivation, commercial harvesting of wild morels has become a multimillion-dollar industry in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, in particular North America, Turkey, China, the Himalayas, India, and Pakistan where these highly prized fungi are found in abundance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morchella conica</span> Species of fungus

Morchella conica is an old binomial name previously applied to species of fungi in the family Morchellaceae. It is one of three scientific names that had been commonly used to describe black morels, the others being M. angusticeps and M. elata. It was first introduced by mycologist Christian Hendrik Persoon in 1818, as a superfluous name for the old taxon Morchella continua. According to Richard and colleagues, Fries’ sanctioning applies only at the subgeneric level and the name is illegitimate.

<i>Morchella tomentosa</i> Species of fungus

Morchella tomentosa, commonly called the gray, fuzzy foot, or black foot morel, is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae. M. tomentosa is a fire-associated species described from western North America, formally described as new to science in 2008.

<i>Morchella rufobrunnea</i> Species of edible fungus in the family Morchellaceae

Morchella rufobrunnea, commonly known as the blushing morel, is a species of ascomycete fungus in the family Morchellaceae. A choice edible species, the fungus was described as new to science in 1998 by mycologists Gastón Guzmán and Fidel Tapia from collections made in Veracruz, Mexico. Its distribution was later revealed to be far more widespread after several DNA studies suggested that it is also present in the West Coast of the United States, Israel, Australia, Cyprus, Malta and Switzerland.

<i>Morchella semilibera</i> Species of fungus

Morchella semilibera, commonly called the half-free morel, is an edible species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae native to Europe and Asia.

<i>Morchella tridentina</i> Species of fungus

Morchella tridentina is a cosmopolitan species of ascomycete fungus in the family Morchellaceae. Commonly referred to as the mountain blond or western blond morel in North America, it produces conical, grey to buff fruit bodies that are rufescent and grow up to 20 cm (7.9 in) tall and 5 cm (2.0 in) wide. This early-diverging species is distinct within the /Elata clade due to its pale colours and has been described by many names in the past, including M. frustrata, M. quercus-ilicis, M. elatoides, M. elatoides var. elegans and M. conica var. pseudoeximia, all of which were shown to be synonyms. A widely distributed relict of the last Ice Age, M. tridentina is so far known from Argentina, Armenia, Chile, Cyprus, France, India, Israel, North America, Spain and Turkey.

Morchella ulmaria is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae. It was described as new to science in 2012 by Philippe Clowez. Later in the same year, Michael Kuo and colleagues described Morchella cryptica, which is a junior synonym of M. ulmaria. The species occurs in the forests of Midwestern North America, often associated with white ash, the American tulip tree or species of maple or elm. It is closely related to M. castanea and 2 unnamed species from Asia.

<i>Morchella americana</i> Species of fungus

Morchella americana is a North American species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae.

<i>Morchella snyderi</i> Species of fungus

Morchella snyderi is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae. Described as new to science in 2012, it occurs in the montane forests of western North America, including California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. It produces fruit bodies up to 14 cm (5.5 in) tall with ridged and pitted conical caps, and stipes that become pitted in maturity. The color of the morel is yellow to tan when young, but the cap ridges become brown to black in maturity or when dried.

<i>Morchella importuna</i> Species of fungus

Morchella importuna is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae described from North America in 2012. It occurs in gardens, woodchip beds, and other urban settings of northern California and the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and Canada. The fungus has also been reported from Turkey, Spain, France, Switzerland, Canada and China, although it is unknown whether this is a result of accidental introductions. It is considered a choice edible mushroom. The fruit bodies develop a distinctive ladder-like pattern of pits and ridges on the surface of their conical caps.

Morchella capitata is a later synonym of Morchella exuberans. Originally identified as phylogenetic species Mel-9, it was described as new to science in 2012 by Kuo and colleagues. In 2014 however, Richard and colleagues clarified the taxonomic status of this species, retaining the name Morchella exuberans of Clowez (2012) over M. capitata.

<i>Morchella septimelata</i> Species of fungus

Morchella septimelata is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae described as new to science in 2012. Occurring in western North America, it has been collected from British Columbia, Montana and Oregon, where it fruits at elevations of 1,000 to 2,000 m in coniferous forests in years following slight to moderate burning.

<i>Morchella sextelata</i> Species of fungus

Morchella sextelata is a species of ascomycete fungus in the family Morchellaceae. Described as new to science in 2012, it is found in North America. It has also been found in China, although it is not known if this is a result of an accidental introduction or natural dispersion. The fruit bodies have a roughly conical cap up to 7.5 cm (3 in) tall and 5 cm (2 in) wide, with a surface of mostly vertically arranged pits. The cap is initially yellowish to brownish, but it darkens to become almost black in maturity. The stipe is white and hollow, measuring 2–5 cm (0.8–2.0 in) high by 1–2.2 cm (0.4–0.9 in) wide.

<i>Morchella populiphila</i> Species of fungus

Morchella populiphila is a species of morel fungus native to northwestern North America. Described as new to science in 2012, its specific epithet refers to its association with black cottonwood. The morel used to be referred to as Morchella semilibera in western North American field guides until molecular analysis established that to be a strictly European species. M. populiphila occurs in California, Nevada and Oregon. Its fruit bodies grow up to 15 cm (6 in) tall with a ridged and pitted conical cap that attaches about halfway down the stipe. The cap ridges are dark brown to black in maturity, while the pits are yellowish to brownish. The fungus is edible, although not as highly valued as other morels.

<i>Morchella anatolica</i> Species of fungus

Morchella anatolica is a rare species of ascomycete fungus in the family Morchellaceae. It was described as new to science in 2010 from southwest Anatolia, Turkey, where it grows on moss-covered stream beds in pine forests. An ancient climatic relict, M. anatolica is restricted to the Mediterranean basin and has also been documented in Spain, Cyprus and Greece, where it is sometimes encountered with trees of the Oleaceae family. Together with its sister-species Morchella rufobrunnea, they are the earliest diverging lineages in genus Morchella, forming a distinct clade that is basal in global morel phylogenies. Because of its phylogenetic position, M. anatolica has been crucial in inferring the historical biogeography of the genus, which is estimated to have emerged somewhere in the Mediterranean region in the late Jurassic.

Morchella kakiicolor is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae (Ascomycota). It was originally proposed as a form of Morchella quercus-ilicis in a 2012 study by Philippe Clowez, but was later re-combined as an autonomous species by Loizides and colleagues, based on molecular phylogenetic data. In the same study, M. quercus-ilicis f. quercus-ilicis was shown by the authors to be a later synonym of the old taxon Morchella tridentina, and not phylogenetically related to M. kakiicolor.

<i>Morchella eximia</i> Species of fungus

Morchella eximia is a globally-occurring fungus in the family Morchellaceae (Ascomycota), first described by Émile Boudier in 1910. In an elaborate phylogenetic and nomenclatural revision of the genus in 2014, Richard and colleagues showed that the taxa Morchella anthracophila, Morchella carbonaria, and Morchella septimelata, proposed in 2012 by Clowez and Kuo et al. respectively, are all later synonyms of this old taxon.

<i>Morchella dunalii</i> Species of fungus

Morchella dunalii is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae (Ascomycota). A widespread species in the Mediterranean basin, M. dunalii is so far known from the Balearic islands, the islands of Corsica and Cyprus, France, Spain and Turkey, where it appears to be abundant. It fruits very early in the season on calcareous soil, usually in association with the Aleppo pine, Calabrian pine and holm oak.

Morchella exuberans is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae (Ascomycota). It was described as new to science in a 2012 study by Clowez and corresponds to phylogenetic lineage Mel-9. Morchella capitata, described by Kuo and colleagues later in the same year, is a synonym of this taxon.

<i>Morchella sceptriformis</i> Species of fungus

Morchella sceptriformis is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae (Ascomycota). It was described as new to science in a 2012 study by Clowez, and corresponds to phylogenetic lineage Mes-3. Morchella virginiana, described later in the same year by Kuo and colleagues, is conspecific to this taxon.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 O'Donnell K, Rooney AP, Mills GL, Kuo M, Weber NS, Rehner SA (Mar 2011). "Phylogeny and historical biogeography of true morels (Morchella) reveals an early Cretaceous origin and high continental endemism and provincialism in the Holarctic". Fungal Genetics and Biology. 48 (3): 252–265. doi:10.1016/j.fgb.2010.09.006. PMID   20888422.
  2. 1 2 Kuo M, Dewsbury DR, O'Donnell K, Carter MC, Rehner SA, Moore JD, Moncalvo JM, Canfield SA, Stephenson SL, Methven AS, Volk TJ (11 April 2012). "Taxonomic revision of true morels (Morchella) in Canada and the United States". Mycologia. 104 (5): 1159–77. doi:10.3852/11-375. PMID   22495449. S2CID   45219627.
  3. ↑ Segula Masaphy; Limor Zabari; Doron Goldberg & Gurinaz Jander-Shagug (Spring 2010). "The Complexity of Morchella Systematics: A Case of the Yellow Morel from Israel" (PDF). Fungi Magazine. 3 (2): 14–18.
  4. ↑ Bunyard, B. A.; Nicholson, M. S.; Royse, D. J. (1994). "A systematic assessment of Morchella using RFLP analysis of the 28S ribosomal gene". Mycologia . 86 (6): 762–772. doi:10.2307/3760589. JSTOR   3760589.
  5. ↑ Bunyard, B. A.; Nicholson, M. S.; Royse, D. J. (1995). "Phylogenetic resolution of Morchella, Verpa, andDisciotis (Pezizales: Morchellaceae) based on restriction enzyme analysis of the 28S ribosomal RNA gene". Experimental Mycology. 19 (3): 223–233. doi:10.1006/emyc.1995.1027. PMID   7553270.
  6. ↑ Kuo, M. (March 2006). "Morel Data Collection Project: Preliminary results" . Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  7. 1 2 Du, X.-H.; Zhao, Q.; O’Donnell, K.; Rooney, A. P. & Yang, Z. L. (2012). "Multigene molecular phylogenetics reveals true morels (Morchella) are especially species-rich in China". Fungal Genetics and Biology. 49 (6): 455–469. doi:10.1016/j.fgb.2012.03.006. PMID   22503770.
  8. ↑ Loizides, Michael; Alvarado, Pablo; Clowez, Philippe; Moreau, Pierre-Arthur; de la Osa, Luis Romero; Palazón, Antonio (2015). "Morchella tridentina, M. rufobrunnea, and M. kakiicolor: a study of three poorly known Mediterranean morels, with nomenclatural updates in section Distantes". Mycol Progress. 14 (3): 13. Bibcode:2015MycPr..14...13L. doi:10.1007/s11557-015-1030-6. S2CID   16132175.
  9. ↑ Harald Kellner; Carsten Renker & François Buscot (2005). "Species diversity within the Morchella esculenta group (Ascomycota: Morchellaceae) in Germany and France" (PDF). Organisms, Diversity & Evolution. 5 (2): 101–107. doi:10.1016/j.ode.2004.07.001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  10. ↑ Hatıra Taşkına; Saadet Büyükalacaa; Hasan Hüseyin Doğanb; Stephen A. Rehnerc; Kerry O'Donnell (Aug 2010). "A multigene molecular phylogenetic assessment of true morels (Morchella) in Turkey". Fungal Genetics and Biology. 47 (8): 672–682. doi:10.1016/j.fgb.2010.05.004. PMID   20580850.
  11. ↑ Taşkın, H.; Büyükalaca, S.; Hansen, K. & O’Donnell, K. (March–April 2012). "Multilocus phylogenetics analysis of true morels (Morchella) reveals high levels of endemics in Turkey relative to other regions of Europe". Mycologia. 104 (2): 446–461. doi:10.3852/11-180. PMID   22123659. S2CID   207685509.
  12. ↑ S. Masaphy; L. Zabari & D. Goldberg (2009). "New long-season ecotype of Morchella rufobrunnea from northern Israel" (PDF). Micologia Aplicada International. 21 (2): 45–55. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  13. ↑ Kanwal HK, Acharya K, Ramesh G, Reddy MS (Dec 25, 2010). "Molecular Characterization of Morchella Species from the Western Himalayan Region of India". Current Microbiology. 62 (4): 1245–1252. doi:10.1007/s00284-010-9849-1. PMID   21188589. S2CID   1394087.
  14. ↑ Fries EM (1822). Systema Mycologicum. Vol. 2. Lundin, Sweden: Ex Officina Berlingiana. p. 8.
  15. ↑ Phillips R. "Morchella elata". Rogers Mushrooms. Archived from the original on 2008-05-18. Retrieved 2008-12-16.
  16. ↑ Parguey-Leduc, A; Janex-Favre, M-C; Bruxelles, G (1998). "Comparative study of the asci and ascospores of some Morels (Genus Morchella, Ascomycetes)". Cryptogamie, Bryologie, Lichénologie. 19 (2–3): 277–292.
  17. ↑ Boudier E (1897) Révision analytique des morilles de France. Bull. Soc. Mycol. Fr. 13 : 130-150.
  18. ↑ Boudier E (1909) Icones mycologicae ou iconographie des champignons de France principalement discomycètes avec texte descriptif. Tome II, pl. 194–421. Librairie des Sciences Naturelles, Paris
  19. ↑ Breitenbach J, Kränzlin F (1984) Fungi of Switzerland, Volume 1: Ascomycetes. Verlag Mykologia, Luzern, Switzerland
  20. ↑ Clowez P (2010) Les morilles: Une nouvelle approche mondiale du genre Morchella. Bulletin trimestriel de la Société mycologique de France 126 (3-4): 199–376.
  21. ↑ Richard, Franck; Bellanger, Jean-Michel; Clowez, Philippe; Courtecuisse, Regis; Hansen, Karen; O'Donnell, Kerry; Sauve, Mathieu; Urban, Alexander; Moreau, Pierre-Arthur (2014). "True morels (Morchella, Pezizales) of Europe and North America: evolutionary relationships inferred from multilocus data and a unified taxonomy". Mycologia. 107 (2): 359–82. doi: 10.3852/14-166 . PMID   25550303.
  22. ↑ Phillips, Roger (2010). Mushrooms and Other Fungi of North America . Buffalo, NY: Firefly Books. p.  361. ISBN   978-1-55407-651-2.
  23. ↑ Miller Jr., Orson K.; Miller, Hope H. (2006). North American Mushrooms: A Field Guide to Edible and Inedible Fungi. Guilford, CN: FalconGuides. p. 503. ISBN   978-0-7627-3109-1.
  24. ↑ Whitney, Stephen (1985). Western Forests (The Audubon Society Nature Guides). New York: Knopf. pp.  497–98. ISBN   0-394-73127-1.
  25. ↑ Stamets, Paul (2005). Mycelium Running . Berkeley: Ten Speed Press. p.  271. ISBN   978-1-58008-579-3.
  26. ↑ Hall, Ian R.; Buchanan, Peter K. (2003). Edible and poisonous mushrooms of the world. Timber Press. ISBN   978-0-88192-586-9.
  27. ↑ Groves, J. Walton (1964). "Poisoning by Morels When Taken with Alcohol". Mycologia. 56 (5): 779–780. doi:10.2307/3756634. JSTOR   3756634.
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