Phlegmacium glaucopus

Phlegmacium glaucopus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Fungi
Division:	Basidiomycota
Class:	Agaricomycetes
Order:	Agaricales
Family:	Cortinariaceae
Genus:	Phlegmacium
Species:	P. glaucopus
Binomial name
Phlegmacium glaucopus (Schaeff.) Wünsche (1877)
Synonyms [1]
Agaricus glaucopusSchaeff. (1774) Agaricus defossus Batsch (1786)Cortinarius glaucopus(Schaeff.) Gray (1821)

Phlegmacium glaucopus Mycological characteristics
	Gills on hymenium
	Cap is convex
	Hymenium is adnate or free
	Stipe has a cortina
	Spore print is reddish-brown
	Ecology is mycorrhizal
	Edibility is inedible

Phlegmacium glaucopus is a species of fungus in the family Cortinariaceae. ^[2] It is commonly known as the blue-foot webcap.^{[ citation needed ]}

Taxonomy

The species was first described as Agaricus glaucopus by Jacob Christian Schäffer in 1774. ^[3] It was reclassified as Cortinarius glaucopus in 1821 by the British mycologist Samuel Frederick Gray. ^[2] However the fully taxonomic history of this species is complicated by numerous proposed variants and forms. ^[2]

Within the genus Cortinarius , it was classified in the subgenus Phlegmacium and section Glaucopodes. A 2014 genetic study confirmed it was synonymous with C. glaucopoides and that C. subrubrovelatus was a distinct species. ^[4]

In 2022 a genomic study was carried out which radically reshaped the family Cortinariaceae resulting in many Cortinarius species being transferred to new or existing genera. C. glaucopus, C. glaucopoides and C. glaucopoides were among the species transferred to the Phlegmacium genus. ^[5]

Common names in other languages include Schwachknolliger Klumpfuss (German), Cortinaire à pied glauque (French) and Szálaskalapú pókhálósgomba (Hungarian). ^[6]

Description

The fruit bodies of this fungus have convex caps 4 to 12 cm (1.6 to 4.7 in) across and ochre or tawny in colour with prominent darker brown fibres. ^{[7] [8]} Like other members of the genus, young mushrooms are covered in a web-like veil (cortina) from the cap margin to the stipe. ^[9] The bulbous stipe is 4–10 cm tall and 1–3 cm wide, ^[8] pale lilac-blue initially with lower parts fading to yellow-white. The flesh is yellow-white with a blue hue in the upper stipe. The lilac-blue gills are adnate or free, and become brown as the spores mature. The smell, if present, is slightly mealy. The spore print is red-brown and the spores measure 6.5–8.5 by 4.5–5  μm. ^[7]

Fruit bodies appear from August onwards into autumn in deciduous and coniferous forests, often in profuse numbers. ^[9] It can be found in fairy rings. ^[10]

Phlegmacium glaucopus is found in Western North America (both the United States and Canada), ^[11] and is common in the Rocky Mountains. ^[10] It is rare east of the Great Plains; ^[11] it is rare in the British Isles. ^[7]

P. glaucopus forms ectomycorrhizae that are unusually hydrophobic (water-repellent) compared with other fungi, which has led to interest in decoding its genome. DNA studies indicate it may decompose toxic polycyclic aromatic compounds in the soil with specially adapted oxidizing enzymes. ^[12]

Habitat and distribution

It is native to Europe and North America.

Similar species

Similar species include C. caerulescens, ^[8] C. pansa, ^[4] C. sodagnitus, ^[8] and C. subfoetens . ^[4]

Edibility

The flesh is mild tasting, ^[7] and not highly regarded. It is considered inedible, ^[13] and because it closely resembles many other species, including those that are deadly poisonous, ^[8] it should definitely not be eaten. ^[14] In Tlaxcala, Mexico, it is collected in June and sold in the market. ^[15]

See also

• List of Cortinarius species

References

1. "Cortinarius glaucopus (Schaeff.) Fr". Index Fungorum. CAB International. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
2. "Species Fungorum - Phlegmacium glaucopus (Schaeff.) Wünsche". www.speciesfungorum.org. Retrieved 2023-01-13.
3. Schaeffer JC. (1774). Fungorum qui in Bavaria et Palatinatu Nascuntur Icones (in Latin). Vol. 4. p. 23.
4. Liimatainen K, Niskanen T, Dima B, Kytövuori I, Ammirati JF, Frøslev TG (2014). "The largest type study of Agaricales species to date: bringing identification and nomenclature of Phlegmacium (Cortinarius) into the DNA era". Persoonia. 33: 98–140. doi:10.3767/003158514X684681. PMC   4312940 . PMID   25737596.
5. Liimatainen, Kare; Kim, Jan T.; Pokorny, Lisa; Kirk, Paul M.; Dentinger, Bryn; Niskanen, Tuula (2022-01-01). "Taming the beast: a revised classification of Cortinariaceae based on genomic data". Fungal Diversity. 112 (1): 89–170. doi:10.1007/s13225-022-00499-9. hdl: 2299/25409 . ISSN   1878-9129. S2CID   256061957.
6. Phillips R (2015). "Cortinarius glaucopus". RogersMushrooms. Rogers Plants Ltd. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
7. Phillips R. (2006). Mushrooms. London, UK: Pan MacMillan. p. 172. ISBN   978-0-330-44237-4.
8. Davis, R. Michael; Sommer, Robert; Menge, John A. (2012). Field Guide to Mushrooms of Western North America. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 257–258. ISBN   978-0-520-95360-4. OCLC   797915861.
9. Haas H. (1969). The Young Specialist Looks at Fungi. London, UK: Burke. p. 116. ISBN   978-0-222-79409-3.
10. Evenson VS (1997). Mushrooms of Colorado and the Southern Rocky Mountains. Big Earth Publishing. p. 121. ISBN   9781565791923.
11. McKnight KH, Peterson RT, McKnight VB (1998). A Field Guide to Mushrooms: North America. Houghton Mifflin Harcour. p. 291. ISBN   9780395910900.
12. "Cortinarius glaucopus". JGI: Mycocosm: The Fungal Genomics Resource. The Regents of the University of California. 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
13. Phillips, Roger (2010). Mushrooms and Other Fungi of North America. Buffalo, NY: Firefly Books. p. 166. ISBN   978-1-55407-651-2.
14. Whitney, Stephen (1985). Western Forests (The Audubon Society Nature Guides). New York: Knopf. p.  495. ISBN   0-394-73127-1.
15. Montoya A, Kong A, Estrada-Torres A, Cifuentes J, Caballero J. "Useful wild fungi of La Malinche National Park, Mexico" (PDF). Fungal Diversity. Chiang Mai, Thailand: The Mushroom Research Foundation. pp. 115–43. Retrieved 2 September 2015.