© Kit Scates Barnhart

Back to Main Menu

Danny’s DNA Discoveries – Entoloma s.l. of the PNW
by Danny Miller

Click here for my Pictorial Key to the Entolomataceae

Introduction

The Europeans place every species on this page inside Entoloma, but in North America, some acknowledge separate genera, as there is often (but not always) a fairly clear way to separate them and otherwise the number of species becomes unwieldy. Even if I treated them all as Entoloma, I would be separating the page into sections, so I might as well call each section a genus. David Largent's 1994 comprehensive treatment of the family on the west coast is the basis for much of what we know of our local species.

abundant common uncommon rare - colour codes match my Pictorial Key and are my opinions and probably reflect my bias of living in W WA. Rare species may be locally common in certain places at certain times.

Summary of Interesting Results

Here are some of the newest, most interesting results of the study:

  • tbd

Entoloma (Rhodopolia) - click to expand

Entoloma in the sense I use it are medium to large (tricholomatoid), smooth, lubricious capped species with grey or brown tones. There are clamps in the cap cuticle. They are very difficult to differentiate from each other without a scope. Nolanea are smaller and more slender (collybioid or mycenoid) with similar cap texture and colour, without clamps in the cap cuticle. The other genera on this page are more colourful or not lubricous. Rarely, an Entoloma might be a tiny omphalinoid species, in which case it could be confused with Paraeccilia.

For those that lump everything on this page in Entoloma, this is considered section Rhodopolia (I don't know why it's not called section Entoloma). For those that split, these are the true Entoloma s.s.

Species mentioned: Entoloma alnobetulae, alpicola, brunnescipes, clavaformipes, grande, griseoavellaneum, griseum, heracleodora, laceratum, lividoalbum, majaloides, saussetiense, lividum, lupinum, lyophylloidium, myrmecophilum, nidorosum, politum, lactarioides, nitriolens, pseudocostatum, pseudolividum, rhodopolium, sericatum, sinuatum, speculum, subpolitum, subsaundersii, subsinuatum, aurorae-borealis, borgenii. Nolanea abbreviatipes.

Nolanea - click to expand

Nolanea are small and slender (colybioid or mycenoid), smooth, lubricious capped species with grey or brown tones without clamps in the cap cuticle. They are very difficult to differentiate from each other without a scope. Entoloma are larger (tricholomatoid) and have clamps in the cap cuticle. One species may be omphalinoid, easily confused with Paraeccilia and the omphalinoid Entoloma politum group. The other genera on this page are more colourful or not smooth and lubricious.

Species mentioned: Nolanea abbreviatipes, conica, bicoloripes, infula, californica, cetrata, clandestina, cuspidifera, edulis, farinogusta, fructifragrans, fusciceps, fusco-ortonii, hebes, tenella, leptopus, hirtipes, holoconiota, incanosquamulosa, latifolia, minutostriata, obscurata, occidentalis, seattlense, washingtonense, papillatoides, pseudopapillata, proxima, proxima forma inodorata, pseudostrictior, pseudostrictia, pusillipapillata, sericea, staurospora f. discoloripes, conferenda, staurospora var. incrustata, staurospora var. farinacea, strictior, subcapitata, solstitialis, subsolstitialis, substrictior, subviolaceoverna, verna, terrea, pygmaeopapillata, undatomarginata, undulata, verna var. isodiametrica. Entoloma cornicolor, leptotus, ortonii, propinquum, rhodocyclix, psammophilohebes, vindobonense. Pouzarella fernandae.

Leptonia - click to expand

These beautiful scaly capped blue to purple-black mostly slender mushrooms are hard to distinguish from 'Cyanula', the group of Leptonias that have to be split into a new genus. The true Leptonia are more likely to be found attached to wood, which does not as typically happen with Cyanula, which are more likely to be reported in grass. However, both genera are commonly reported from the forest floor. Also, Leptonia caps are usually the same kind of scaly throughout the cap, although the scales can be more concentrated on the disc. Cyanula caps can be scaly on the disc, but more fibrillose or even smooth towards the edge. Finally, unlike Cyanula, Leptonia usually have clamps in the cap cuticle. Thanks to Ben McCormick's 2021 bachelor's thesis that incorporated DNA, Leptonia are some of the best understood Entolomas in the PNW.

Leptonia has only two local species that are not blue at least somewhere on the fruiting body.

Species mentioned: Leptonia cyanea var. occidentalis, tjallingiorum var. laricinum, insueta, lampropus, subeuchroa, convexa, zanthophylla, occidentalis, occidentalis var. metallica, occidentalis var. fibrillosipes,  coelestina, subcoelestina, violacea, dichroa, subgracilis, violaceonigra, pleopodia. Entoloma kauffmanii.

Cyanula - click to expand

Cyanula needs to be split from Leptonia, but the genus hasn't formally been erected yet. These colourful, scaly capped mostly slender mushrooms are hard to distinguish from Leptonia when they are blue. Other colours besides blue are typically not found in Leptonia, only two local species are not blue. It should be noted that even brown Cyanula have interesting pigments that makes them recognizable and stand out as from among all the "ordinary" brown mushrooms of the world. Cyanula are typically found on the ground, sometimes in grass, whereas Leptonia are more often found attached to wood and aren't as often reported from grass. However, both genera are commonly reported from the forest floor. Cyanula caps can be scaly on the disc, but more fibrillose or even smooth towards the edge, whereas Leptonia caps are usually the same kind of scaly throughout the cap. Finally, unlike Leptonia, Cyanula don't have clamps in the cap cuticle.

Species mentioned: Leptonia acutoumbonata, albida, albinella, anatina, asprella, atrifucata, badissima var. badissima, badissima var. longisporum, caesiocincta, chalybea, coacta, decolorans, decolorans forma cystidiosa, earlei, exalbida, exilis, foliocontusa, formosa, formosa var. microspora, fuligineomarginata, gracilipes, grisea, incana, lividocyanula, lutulenta, microspora, nigrosquamosa var. californica, ovatospora, parva, pseudobulbipes, rectangula, rosea var. marginata, rostrata, serrulata, sodalis, striatula forma farinacea, strictipes, subnigra, subrubinea, subviduense, subviduense var. marginata, trichomata, turci, umbilicata, undulatella. Entoloma hesleri, subfurfuraceum, squamatum, nigroviolaceum var. striatulum, unbiliciforme.

Alboleptonia - click to expand

Slender, all white mushrooms. Rarely, a Cyanula will be all white, but those lack clamps in the cap cuticle and don't have a cap cuticle of entangled hyphae, but instead of erect hyphal ends)

Species mentioned: Alboleptonia earlei, ochracea, sericella var. lutescens, adnatifolia

Prunuloides - click to expand

A large, viscid, blue, farinaceous Entoloma., our largest blue species. Our second largest blue species, Entocybe nitidum, is not viscid. The cap and stem are usually blue, but the colour may fade in age to brown, making it hard to identify. Rarely, it seems to fruit lacking any blue pigmentation even from the start.

Entocybe seems to be near this clade in multi-gene studies, even though it is not so in my ITS only tree. This would mean one could consider Prunuloides and Entocybe as a single genus or section if one wanted to.

Species mentioned: Entoloma bloxamii, medianox, madidum, caesiolamellatum

Entocybe - click to expand

Entocybe nitida has a beautiful blue opaque cap and stem. It is medium sized with a dry cap and little odor, smaller than the large 'Prunuloides' medianox (with a viscid cap and stronger farinaceous odor) but larger than the many blue Leptonia and 'Cyanula'.

Entocybe trachyospora complex members are smaller with a pointy translucent cap, and may have a hint of blue in the cap and a bent, silver-blue, striate stem. When all the blue is faded it is difficult to separate from Nolanea, and when it hasn't, it is difficult to separate from Leptonia and 'Cyanula'.

Some species have no blue and are rather non descript and difficult to place in this section. The almost black, fibrillose capped Inocephalus minutopilus WA 1994 is closest to this genus.

Entocybe seems to be near Prunuloides in multi-gene studies, even though it isn't so in my ITS only trees. This would mean one could consider Prunuloides and Entocybe as a single genus or section, if one wanted to.

Species mentioned: Entocybe nitidum, trachyospora. Inocephalus minutopilus. Rhodocybe speciosa.

Claudopus and Paraeccilia - click to expand

Claudopus contains the oyster style Entolomas on wood with strongly and obviously angular spores. (Clitopilus contains the pink spored oyster mushrooms with more subtly angled spores).

DNA is showing us that the concept of Claudopus may need to be expanded to include at least some omphalinoid Entolomas on the ground (the type species of Paraeccilia may be inside Claudopus). The odd "galled" parasite Entoloma abortivum is also inside Claudopus.

Species mentioned: Claudopus byssisedus, byssisedus var. microspora, parasiticus. Paraeccilia minutissima, nucisapora, perundata, rusticoides, sericeonitida var. sericeonitida, sericeonitida var. ligniphila. Entoloma abortivum, undatum.

Pouzarella - click to expand

Small, conical, fibrillose, usually unpleasant smelling mushrooms that resemble dark Nolaneas. The stem base is usually strigose. Microscopically, the cap hyphae have incrusted, thickened, brownish walls.
 

Species mentioned: Pouzarella alissae, fernandae, fulvostrigosa, versatilis.

Trichopilus - click to expand

Scaly/fibrillose caps, characters also found sometimes in Inocephalus/Rhombisporum and Pouzarella, but Trichopilus have distinctive cap cystidia not found in those other genera. Trichopilus may not be monophyletic, the species may represent more than one genus (or section of Entoloma, depending on how you see things).

Species mentioned: Trichopilus jubatus, plebeioides.

Caeruleopolitum, Cocles, Inocephalus, Rhombisporum, Undulatosporum, etc. - click to expand

Fibrillose caps, with what is referred to as a scummy disc. Pouzarella and Trichopilus caps also have fibrillose/scaly caps. Formerly all placed in Inocephalus, it is now known that some species belong in a separate genus, which I am calling Rhombisporum. Rhombisporum is currently only a section of Entoloma and for those who do not lump every species on this page into Entoloma, it still needs to be promoted to genus. Inocephalus may not be monophyletic, those species may represent more than one genus (or section of Entoloma, depending on how you see things).

Species mentioned: Inocephalus appressus, azureus, fabaceolus, furfuraceidiscus, minutopilus, perfuscus, rhombisporus, rigidipus. Entoloma cocles.

 

Back to Main Menu