| Morchella snyderi | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Pezizomycetes |
| Order: | Pezizales |
| Family: | Morchellaceae |
| Genus: | Morchella |
| Species: | M. snyderi |
| Binomial name | |
| Morchella snyderi M.Kuo & Methven (2012) | |
Morchella snyderi is a species offungus in the familyMorchellaceae. Described as new to science in 2012, it occurs in themontane forests of western North America, includingCalifornia,Idaho,Montana,Oregon andWashington. It producesfruit bodies up to 14 cm (5.5 in) tall with ridged and pitted conicalcaps, andstipes 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.
Morchella snyderi was described as new to science in 2012, along with 13 other morels from the United States and Canada. The study, published in the journalMycologia, resulted from the Morel Data Collection Project, which aimed to help clarify thetaxonomy, biology, and distribution of morel species in North America.[1] Thespecific epithet honorsLeon C. Snyder, who described similar morels inWashington state in the 1930s.[2] According to Michael Kuo, who coauthored the species description, the morel should have been namedMorchella crassistipa, as it was previously described by Snyder in 1938, from collections made in Washington. However,molecular analysis determined that Snyder'stype collection contained two distinct species, rendering thevalidity of the taxon dubious.[3]M. snyderi was also previously identified asphylogenetic speciesMel-12 (i.e., defined byDNA sequence) in a 2011 study.[4]
Despite the light coloration of young fruit bodies,Morchella snyderi groups in theelataclade (named after the European black morelM. elata) along with other "black" morels such asM. angusticeps andM. tomentosa.Morphological characteristics of morels in this clade include pits on the cap that are usually elongated vertically in mature fruit bodies, and often the presence of asinus (a space or indentation) where the cap attaches to the stipe.[2]
Thefruit bodies are 6–14 cm (2.4–5.5 in) high. The conicalcap is 3.5–8 cm (1.4–3.1 in) high and 3–5 cm (1.2–2.0 in) wide at the widest point. The cap surface features pits and ridges, formed by the intersection of 16–22 primary vertical ridges and frequent shorter, secondary vertical ridges, with occasional sunken, horizontal ridges. The cap is attached to thestipe with a sinus about 2–4 mm deep and 2–4 mm wide. The ridges are smooth or very finely tomentose (covered with densely matted filaments). They are initially pale yellowish, becoming pale tan, then grayish brown in maturity, eventually darkening to nearly black when dried. They are flattened when young but sometimes become sharpened or eroded in maturity. The pits are somewhat elongated vertically (particularly when mature). They are finely tomentose, yellowish when young, becoming pale tan to pale grayish brown.[2] Fruit bodies are often found in a transitional stage where the upper part of the cap has turned dark while the lower part remains light.[3]
The whitish to pale brownishstipe is 3.5–7 cm (1.4–2.8 in) long by 2.5–4 cm (1.0–1.6 in) wide and is roughly equal in width throughout its length, or sometimes slightly thicker near the base. Its surface, initially covered with whitish granules, becomes more granulated as the mushroom ages, and typically develops prominent ridges and pits (i.e., becomeslacunose) with maturity. Theflesh is whitish, measuring 1–2 mm thick in the hollow cap; it becomes layered and chambered, particularly in the base of the stipe. The sterile inner surface of the cap is whitish and pubescent (covered with short, soft "hair").[2]
Theascospores ofM. snyderi are elliptical and smooth, measuring 25–37 by 15–23 μm.Asci (spore-bearing cells) are eight-spored, cylindrical, and measure 225–300 by 7.5–32.5 μm.Paraphyses are cylindrical,septate, and measure 100–200 by 7.5–20 μm. Their tips are variably shaped, from rounded to club-shaped, to fuse-shaped. The contents of the paraphyses arehyaline (translucent) to faintly brownish in dilutepotassium hydroxide (KOH).Hyphae on the sterile cap ridges are septate and measure 75–175 by 10–20 μm. The terminal cells are variably shaped (similar to the paraphyses), and have hyaline to brownish contents in KOH.[2]
North AmericanMorchella are generally considered choiceedibles,[5] but the edibility ofM. snyderi was not mentioned in its original description.[2]
Morchella snyderi can be distinguished from similar North American morels by differences in ecological and morphological features.M. tridentina resembles young specimens ofM. snyderi, but the ridges of the caps of the former species do not darken in maturity, and it has smaller ascospores, measuring 20–29 by 14–19 μm. Another potential lookalike,M. brunnea, has a browner fruit body color in young specimens, and a stipe that is not lacunose.[2]
Morchella snyderi is suspected of being bothsaprobic andmycorrhizal at different stages in itslife cycle. Fruit bodies grow singly, scattered, or in groups on the ground underconifers, particularlyDouglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) andwhite fir (Abies concolor). Fruiting occurs from April to June.[3] The fungus has been collected in California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, and Arizona.[2]M. snyderi, identified as phylogenetic speciesMel-12, has been shown to colonize the non-native speciesBromus tectorum (cheatgrass) as anendophyte. This is hypothesized to be a contributing factor in the success of cheatgrass as aninvasive species in western North America.[6]