| Mycena vitilis | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Basidiomycota |
| Class: | Agaricomycetes |
| Order: | Agaricales |
| Family: | Mycenaceae |
| Genus: | Mycena |
| Species: | M. vitilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Mycena vitilis | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
Agaricus vitilisFr. | |
| Mycena vitilis | |
|---|---|
| Mycological characteristics | |
 | Gills onhymenium |
 | Cap is conical |
 | Hymenium is adnate |
 | Stipe is bare |
 | Spore print is white |
 | Ecology issaprotrophic |
 | Edibility is inedible |
Mycena vitilis, commonly known as thesnapping bonnet, is a species of inediblemushroom in the familyMycenaceae. It is found in Europe and North America, where it grows on the ground among leaves in damp places, especially underalder. The small pale gray to whitishfruit bodies are usually attached to small sticks buried in the leaves anddetritus. They are distinguished by their long, slenderstems that root into the ground, and by the groovedcap that reaches diameters of up to 2.2 cm (0.9 in). The grayish-whitegills on the underside of the cap are distantly spaced, andadnately attached to the stem.M. vitilis containsstrobilurin B, a fungicidal compound with potential use in agriculture.
First described asAgaricus vitilis by Swedish mycologistElias Magnus Fries in 1838,[2] it was assigned toMycena vitilis in 1872 byLucien Quélet.[3] The white-bodied variantMycena vitilis var. corsica has been described from Italy, and differs from the main species by its white fruit bodies and differing measurements for several microscopic characters.[4]Carleton Rea named another varietyamsegetes (meaning "field by the roadside"), which differs from the type variety by its "obsoletelyumbonate" cap, its shorter and thicker stem, and its typical habitat of meadows and roadsides.[5] The name "Mycena filopes" has also been confusingly applied to this species by some authors,[6] althoughM. filopes (Bull.) P. Kumm. is a species that is recognized as being distinct fromM. vitilis.[7]
Thespecific epithetvitilis is derived from theLatin word for "good for tying or binding with",[8] or "plaited".[5] The mushroom'scommon name is the "snapping bonnet".[9] In his 1871Handbook of British Fungi,Mordecai Cubitt Cooke called it the "flexile Mycena".[10]
Thecap ofM. vitilis is initially conic or bell-shaped, but flattens out in maturity, and typically reaches dimensions of up to 2.2 cm (0.9 in).[11] When young, the cap margin is pressed against the stem, but as the cap expands it becomes bell-shaped or somewhatumbonate, and the margin flattens out or curves inward. The cap surface is initially hoary but soon becomes polished and slimy when moist, or shiny when dry. Even grooves on the cap margin indicate where the gills are located underneath. The cap color is beige (sometimes with a grayish tinge) with paler margins, fading to pale gray or nearly white in age.[12] Occasionally, the mushroom cap has a strong brownish tint when fresh. Moist mushrooms have a slightly sticky surface.[13] Theflesh is thin but pliant, grayish or pallid,cartilaginous, and lacks any distinctive odor and taste.[12]
Thegills are attached by a tooth and are narrowlyadnate, close to subdistant, narrow, equal, white or grayish, and with edgesconcolorous and often slightly eroded.[12]Berkeley noted that the gills "vary a good deal in colour, and are sometimes very dark".[14] Thestem is 6–12 cm (2.4–4.7 in) long, 1.5–2 mm (0.06–0.08 in) thick, equal in width throughout, cartilaginous and tough. The stem color is brown with a tinge of pink, and the color lightens towards the top.[13] It is usually straight but often curved toward the base, and roots into in the debris, or is attached to sticks.[12] Smith has noted that in optimal weather conditions, "robust" forms may be found that are "strict and rigid in their appearance."[15] The buried portion of the stem is covered with thick, stiff whitish hairs, and is surrounded with a thin subgelatinous layer, which causes it to be slimy to the touch. Its color is initially bluish-black, soon gray, nearly the same color as the cap, with the apex somewhat fibrous-striate.[12] The mushroom is inedible.[13]
Thespores areellipsoid,hyaline,amyloid, and measure 9–11 by 5–6 μm. Thebasidia (spore-bearing cells) are four-spored. The pleurocystidia (cystidia on the gill face) are not differentiated or are occasionally present near the gill edge and similar to cheilocystidia (cystidia on the gill edge). The cheilocystidia, which measure 32–46 by 8–14 μm, are tapered on either end and can have two to several obtuse fingerlike projections arising from the apex. The gill fleshstainsvinaceous-brown in iodine. The subhymenium (the tissue layer directly underneath thehymenium) is made of narrow, interwovenhyphae, with the central portion composed of long, cylindrical, and moderately broad cells. The flesh of the cap has a fairly thick subgelatinouspellicle, a well-differentiated hypoderm, and a filamentous tramal body. All except the pellicle stain vinaceous-brown in iodine.[12]
The fruit bodies ofMycena vitilis are found growing scattered or in groups ondebris inhardwood ormixed conifer and hardwood forests. Along thePacific Coast it is sometimes abundant inRed alder slashes. In eastern North America it is quite commonly found growing in the autumn months of October and November withM. semivestipes andM. pullata.[12] The fungus is widely distributed in Europe (for example, Britain,[5] Germany,[16] Italy,[4] Norway,[11] Poland,[17] Portugal[18]).
The fruit bodies ofMycena vitilis contain the chlorinated compound strobilurin B.Strobilurins arearomatic compounds produced by some fungi that help them secure resources by giving them an advantage against other competing fungi. They have been investigated for potential use aslead compounds for agriculturalfungicides.[19]
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