Amanita daucipes
Encyclopedia
Amanita daucipes is a species of fungus
in the Amanitaceae
family of the Agaricales
order of mushroom
s. Found exclusively in North America, the mushroom may be recognized in the field by the medium to large white cap
s with pale orange tints, and the dense covering of pale orange or reddish-brown powdery conical warts on the cap surface. The mushroom also has a characteristic large bulb at the base of its stem
with a blunt short rooting base, whose shape is suggestive of the common name
s carrot-footed Lepidella, carrot-foot Amanita, or turnip-foot Amanita. The mushroom has a strong odor that has been described variously as "sweet and nauseous", or compared to an old ham bone, or soap. Edibility
is unknown for the species, but consumption is generally not recommended due its position in the Amanita
subgroup Lepidella, which contains some poisonous members.
and Camille Montagne, who named it Agaricus daucipes. It was later renamed to Amanitopsis daucipes by Pier Andrea Saccardo
, in 1887. In 1899, American mycologist Curtis Gates Lloyd
transferred the species to the genus Amanita
. It is in the section
Lepidella of the genus Amanita
, in the subgenus
Lepidella, a grouping of related Amanita mushrooms characterized by their amyloid
spores
. Other North American species in this subgenus include A. abrupta
, A. atkinsoniana
, A. chlorinosma, A. cokeri
, A. mutabilis, A. onusta
, A. pelioma, A. polypyramis, A. ravenelii
and A. rhopalopus. Its common names include the "carrot-foot Amanita", the "turnip-foot Amanita", or the "carrot-footed Lepidella". The specific epithet daucipes means "carrot foot".
of the fruit bodies
initially have a convex shape before flattening out in maturity, and measure 6 to 25 cm (2.4 to 9.8 in) in diameter. The cap surface is dry to shiny, and white with a pale orange hue. It is densely covered with white to pale orange or reddish brown conical warts. The warts, remnants of the universal veil
, are randomly distributed on the cap surface and become fluffier and cotton-like (flocculent) near the edge (or margin) of the cap. Drier specimens may have the cap surface completely cracked around the bases of the individual warts.The conical warts are detersile, meaning they may be easily removed from the cap surface without leaving a residue or a scar. The margin of the cap does not have striations, and like other Lepidella members, may have irregular veil remnants hanging from it. The gills are free, crowded closely together, moderately narrow, and white to yellowish white in color. The short gills that do not extend the full distance from the stem to the cap edge (known as lamellulae) are rounded to attenuate (gradually narrowing), and of varying lengths.
The stem
is 7.5 to 20 cm (3 to 7.9 in) long, 0.8 to 2.5 cm (0.31496062992126 to 0.984251968503937 in) thick, and is attached to the center of the cap. It tapers slightly towards the apex, and is solid, dry, white or sometimes with a pale orange tint, and covered with tufts of soft woolly hairs. If handled, the stem will slowly bruise and discolor to approximately the same color as the cap. The basal bulb is large, reaching up to 15 by, and is broadly spindle- to turnip-shaped. The bulb has a circular ridge on its upper part where the universal veil was previously attached, and the bulb may have longitudinal splits. It is covered with pinkish to reddish veil remains. The partial veil
forms an ephemeral ring
on the upper part of the stem. It is white to pale yellow, and usually falls off as the cap expands; fragments of the ring may often be found lying on the ground near the base of the stem. The universal veil remnants, when present, are similar to that on the cap. The flesh
is firm and white. Fruit bodies have an odor that is strong and unpleasant, described as "sweet and nauseous". The odor has also been compared to that of "an old ham bone or soap" or "decaying protein", especially older specimens.
, the spores
of A. daucipes are white, cream, or yellowish in color. Viewed with a microscope, they have an ellipsoid to elongate shape (sometimes kidney-shape, or reniform), and dimensions of 8–11 by 5–7 µm
. They are translucent (hyaline
), with thin walls, and are amyloid
, meaning that they absorb iodine
when stained Melzer's reagent
. The basidia (the spore-bearing cells) are 30–50 by 7–11 µm, club-shaped, and 4-spored, with clamps at their bases. The cheilocystidia are abundant, small, roughly spherical to club-shaped cells, with dimensions of 15–40 by 10–28 µm. The cap cuticle
is between 75 and 180 µm thick, and consists of a dense layer of thin-walled, interwoven, and slightly gelatinized hypha
e that are 2–5 µm in diameter. Clamp connection
s are present in the hyphae of this species.
of A. daucipes is unknown, but the mushroom is not recommended for consumption because the
Lepidella section of Amanita also contains several poisonous species.
trees) in Maryland
, North Carolina
, New Jersey
, Ohio
, Pennsylvania
, Tennessee
, Virginia
, West Virginia
, Kentucky
, and Texas
; other associated tree species include hickory
(genus Carya) and birch
(Betula). A predilection for disturbed soil, such as roadsides, has been noted. Amanita authority Cornelis Bas, writing in his extensive 1969 monograph
on the genus, claimed A. daucipes to be a rare species; subsequent investigations have shown it to be common in oak forests in the eastern United States. The southern end of its distribution extends to Sonora
, Mexico.
Fungus
A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...
in the Amanitaceae
Amanitaceae
Amanitaceae are a family of fungi or mushrooms. The family, also commonly called the Amanita family, is in order Agaricales, gilled mushrooms...
family of the Agaricales
Agaricales
The fungal order Agaricales, also known as gilled mushrooms , or euagarics, contains some of the most familiar types of mushrooms. The order has 33 extant families, 413 genera, and over 13000 described species, along with five extinct genera known only from the fossil record...
order of mushroom
Mushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
s. Found exclusively in North America, the mushroom may be recognized in the field by the medium to large white cap
Pileus (mycology)
The pileus is the technical name for the cap, or cap-like part, of a basidiocarp or ascocarp that supports a spore-bearing surface, the hymenium. The hymenium may consist of lamellae, tubes, or teeth, on the underside of the pileus...
s with pale orange tints, and the dense covering of pale orange or reddish-brown powdery conical warts on the cap surface. The mushroom also has a characteristic large bulb at the base of its stem
Stipe (mycology)
thumb|150px|right|Diagram of a [[basidiomycete]] stipe with an [[annulus |annulus]] and [[volva |volva]]In mycology a stipe refers to the stem or stalk-like feature supporting the cap of a mushroom. Like all tissues of the mushroom other than the hymenium, the stipe is composed of sterile hyphal...
with a blunt short rooting base, whose shape is suggestive of the common name
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
s carrot-footed Lepidella, carrot-foot Amanita, or turnip-foot Amanita. The mushroom has a strong odor that has been described variously as "sweet and nauseous", or compared to an old ham bone, or soap. Edibility
Edible mushroom
Edible mushrooms are the fleshy and edible fruiting bodies of several species of fungi. Mushrooms belong to the macrofungi, because their fruiting structures are large enough to be seen with the naked eye. They can appear either below ground or above ground where they may be picked by hand...
is unknown for the species, but consumption is generally not recommended due its position in the Amanita
Amanita
The genus Amanita contains about 600 species of agarics including some of the most toxic known mushrooms found worldwide. This genus is responsible for approximately 95% of the fatalities resulting from mushroom poisoning, with the death cap accounting for about 50% on its own...
subgroup Lepidella, which contains some poisonous members.
Taxonomy
Amanita daucipes was first described in 1856 by the mycologists Miles Joseph BerkeleyMiles Joseph Berkeley
Miles Joseph Berkeley was an English cryptogamist and clergyman, and one of the founders of the science of plant pathology....
and Camille Montagne, who named it Agaricus daucipes. It was later renamed to Amanitopsis daucipes by Pier Andrea Saccardo
Pier Andrea Saccardo
Pier Andrea Saccardo was an Italian botanist and mycologist.- Life :...
, in 1887. In 1899, American mycologist Curtis Gates Lloyd
Curtis Gates Lloyd
Curtis Gates Lloyd was an American mycologist known for both his research on the Gasteromycetes, as well as his controversial views on naming conventions in taxonomy. He had a herbarium with over 59,000 fungal specimens, and published over a thousand new species of fungi...
transferred the species to the genus Amanita
Amanita
The genus Amanita contains about 600 species of agarics including some of the most toxic known mushrooms found worldwide. This genus is responsible for approximately 95% of the fatalities resulting from mushroom poisoning, with the death cap accounting for about 50% on its own...
. It is in the section
Section (botany)
In botany, a section is a taxonomic rank below the genus, but above the species. The subgenus, if present, is higher than the section, and the rank of series, if present, is below the section. Sections are typically used to help organise very large genera, which may have hundreds of species...
Lepidella of the genus Amanita
Amanita
The genus Amanita contains about 600 species of agarics including some of the most toxic known mushrooms found worldwide. This genus is responsible for approximately 95% of the fatalities resulting from mushroom poisoning, with the death cap accounting for about 50% on its own...
, in the subgenus
Subgenus
In biology, a subgenus is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.In zoology, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the generic name and the specific epithet: e.g. the Tiger Cowry of the Indo-Pacific, Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, which...
Lepidella, a grouping of related Amanita mushrooms characterized by their amyloid
Amyloid
Amyloids are insoluble fibrous protein aggregates sharing specific structural traits. Abnormal accumulation of amyloid in organs may lead to amyloidosis, and may play a role in various neurodegenerative diseases.-Definition:...
spores
Basidiospore
A basidiospore is a reproductive spore produced by Basidiomycete fungi. Basidiospores typically each contain one haploid nucleus that is the product of meiosis, and they are produced by specialized fungal cells called basidia. In grills under a cap of one common species in the phylum of...
. Other North American species in this subgenus include A. abrupta
Amanita abrupta
Amanita abrupta, commonly known as the abrupt-bulbed Lepidella, is a species of fungus in the Amanitaceae family of mushrooms. Named for the characteristic shape of its fruit bodies, this white Amanita has a slender stem, a cap covered with conical white warts, and an "abruptly enlarged" swollen base...
, A. atkinsoniana
Amanita atkinsoniana
Amanita atkinsoniana is a species of fungus in the Amanitaceae family. It is found in the northeastern, southeastern, and southern United States as well as southern Canada, where it grows solitarily or in small groups on the ground in mixed woods. The fruit body is white to brownish, with caps that...
, A. chlorinosma, A. cokeri
Amanita cokeri
Amanita cokeri, commonly known as Coker's Amanita, is a mushroom in the Amanitaceae family. The mushroom is poisonous. First described as Lepidella cokeri in 1928, it was transferred to the genus Amanita in 1940.-Description:...
, A. mutabilis, A. onusta
Amanita onusta
Amanita onusta, commonly known as the loaded Lepidella or the gunpowder Lepidella, is a species of fungus in the Amanitaceae family of mushrooms. It is characterized by its small to medium-sized fruit bodies that have white to pale gray caps crowded with roughly conical, pyramidal, or irregular...
, A. pelioma, A. polypyramis, A. ravenelii
Amanita ravenelii
Amanita ravenelii, commonly known as the pinecone Lepidella, is a species of fungus in the Amanitaceae family. The fruit bodies are medium to large, with caps up to wide, and a stem up to long and thick. The warts on the whitish cap surface are large—up to wide and high...
and A. rhopalopus. Its common names include the "carrot-foot Amanita", the "turnip-foot Amanita", or the "carrot-footed Lepidella". The specific epithet daucipes means "carrot foot".
Description
The capsPileus (mycology)
The pileus is the technical name for the cap, or cap-like part, of a basidiocarp or ascocarp that supports a spore-bearing surface, the hymenium. The hymenium may consist of lamellae, tubes, or teeth, on the underside of the pileus...
of the fruit bodies
Basidiocarp
In fungi, a basidiocarp, basidiome or basidioma , is the sporocarp of a basidiomycete, the multicellular structure on which the spore-producing hymenium is borne. Basidiocarps are characteristic of the hymenomycetes; rusts and smuts do not produce such structures...
initially have a convex shape before flattening out in maturity, and measure 6 to 25 cm (2.4 to 9.8 in) in diameter. The cap surface is dry to shiny, and white with a pale orange hue. It is densely covered with white to pale orange or reddish brown conical warts. The warts, remnants of the universal veil
Universal veil
In mycology, a universal veil is a temporary membranous tissue that fully envelops immature fruiting bodies of certain gilled mushrooms. The developing Caesar's mushroom , for example, which may resemble a small white sphere at this point, is protected by this structure...
, are randomly distributed on the cap surface and become fluffier and cotton-like (flocculent) near the edge (or margin) of the cap. Drier specimens may have the cap surface completely cracked around the bases of the individual warts.The conical warts are detersile, meaning they may be easily removed from the cap surface without leaving a residue or a scar. The margin of the cap does not have striations, and like other Lepidella members, may have irregular veil remnants hanging from it. The gills are free, crowded closely together, moderately narrow, and white to yellowish white in color. The short gills that do not extend the full distance from the stem to the cap edge (known as lamellulae) are rounded to attenuate (gradually narrowing), and of varying lengths.
The stem
Stipe (mycology)
thumb|150px|right|Diagram of a [[basidiomycete]] stipe with an [[annulus |annulus]] and [[volva |volva]]In mycology a stipe refers to the stem or stalk-like feature supporting the cap of a mushroom. Like all tissues of the mushroom other than the hymenium, the stipe is composed of sterile hyphal...
is 7.5 to 20 cm (3 to 7.9 in) long, 0.8 to 2.5 cm (0.31496062992126 to 0.984251968503937 in) thick, and is attached to the center of the cap. It tapers slightly towards the apex, and is solid, dry, white or sometimes with a pale orange tint, and covered with tufts of soft woolly hairs. If handled, the stem will slowly bruise and discolor to approximately the same color as the cap. The basal bulb is large, reaching up to 15 by, and is broadly spindle- to turnip-shaped. The bulb has a circular ridge on its upper part where the universal veil was previously attached, and the bulb may have longitudinal splits. It is covered with pinkish to reddish veil remains. The partial veil
Partial veil
thumb|150px|right|Developmental stages of [[Agaricus campestris]] showing the role and evolution of a partial veilPartial veil is a mycological term used to describe a temporary structure of tissue found on the fruiting bodies of some basidiomycete fungi, typically agarics...
forms an ephemeral ring
Annulus (mycology)
An annulus is the ring like structure sometimes found on the stipe of some species of mushrooms. The annulus represents the remaining part of the partial veil, after it has ruptured to expose the gills or other spore-producing surface. An annulus may be thick and membranous, or it may be cobweb-like...
on the upper part of the stem. It is white to pale yellow, and usually falls off as the cap expands; fragments of the ring may often be found lying on the ground near the base of the stem. The universal veil remnants, when present, are similar to that on the cap. The flesh
Trama (mycology)
In mycology trama is a term for the inner, fleshy portion of a mushroom's basidiocarp, or fruit body. It is distinct from the outer layer of tissue, known as the pileipellis or cuticle, and from the spore-bearing tissue layer known as the hymenium....
is firm and white. Fruit bodies have an odor that is strong and unpleasant, described as "sweet and nauseous". The odor has also been compared to that of "an old ham bone or soap" or "decaying protein", especially older specimens.
Microscopic characteristics
Viewed in deposit, such as with a spore printSpore print
thumb|300px|right|Making a spore print of the mushroom Volvariella volvacea shown in composite: mushroom cap laid on white and dark paper; cap removed after 24 hours showing pinkish-tan spore print...
, the spores
Basidiospore
A basidiospore is a reproductive spore produced by Basidiomycete fungi. Basidiospores typically each contain one haploid nucleus that is the product of meiosis, and they are produced by specialized fungal cells called basidia. In grills under a cap of one common species in the phylum of...
of A. daucipes are white, cream, or yellowish in color. Viewed with a microscope, they have an ellipsoid to elongate shape (sometimes kidney-shape, or reniform), and dimensions of 8–11 by 5–7 µm
Micrometre
A micrometer , is by definition 1×10-6 of a meter .In plain English, it means one-millionth of a meter . Its unit symbol in the International System of Units is μm...
. They are translucent (hyaline
Hyaline
The term hyaline denotes a substance with a glass-like appearance.-Histopathology:In histopathological medical usage, a hyaline substance appears glassy and pink after being stained with haematoxylin and eosin — usually it is an acellular, proteinaceous material...
), with thin walls, and are amyloid
Amyloid
Amyloids are insoluble fibrous protein aggregates sharing specific structural traits. Abnormal accumulation of amyloid in organs may lead to amyloidosis, and may play a role in various neurodegenerative diseases.-Definition:...
, meaning that they absorb iodine
Iodine
Iodine is a chemical element with the symbol I and atomic number 53. The name is pronounced , , or . The name is from the , meaning violet or purple, due to the color of elemental iodine vapor....
when stained Melzer's reagent
Melzer's Reagent
Melzer's reagent is a chemical reagent used by mycologists to assist with the identification of fungi.-Composition:...
. The basidia (the spore-bearing cells) are 30–50 by 7–11 µm, club-shaped, and 4-spored, with clamps at their bases. The cheilocystidia are abundant, small, roughly spherical to club-shaped cells, with dimensions of 15–40 by 10–28 µm. The cap cuticle
Pileipellis
thumb|300px||right|The cuticle of some mushrooms, such as [[Russula mustelina]] shown here, can be peeled from the cap, and may be useful as an identification feature....
is between 75 and 180 µm thick, and consists of a dense layer of thin-walled, interwoven, and slightly gelatinized hypha
Hypha
A hypha is a long, branching filamentous structure of a fungus, and also of unrelated Actinobacteria. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium; yeasts are unicellular fungi that do not grow as hyphae.-Structure:A hypha consists of one or...
e that are 2–5 µm in diameter. Clamp connection
Clamp connection
A clamp connection is a structure formed by growing hyphal cells of certain fungi. It is created to ensure each septum, or segment of hypha separated by crossed walls, receives a set of differing nuclei, which are obtained through mating of hyphae of differing sexual types...
s are present in the hyphae of this species.
Edibility
The edibilityEdible mushroom
Edible mushrooms are the fleshy and edible fruiting bodies of several species of fungi. Mushrooms belong to the macrofungi, because their fruiting structures are large enough to be seen with the naked eye. They can appear either below ground or above ground where they may be picked by hand...
of A. daucipes is unknown, but the mushroom is not recommended for consumption because the
Lepidella section of Amanita also contains several poisonous species.
Similar species
Amanita daucipes is superficially similar to another related North American species, the chlorine Lepidella (A. chlorinosma), but may be distinguished from the latter by its color and the large basal bulb. Further, A. daucipes has "tougher, more distinct volval scales that are tinged with orange-yellow to orange-brown or light reddish-brown."Habitat and distribution
Amanita daucipes is a mycorrhizal species, and its fruit bodies may be found growing solitary or scattered on the ground in mixed coniferous and deciduous forests (especially those dominated by oakOak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
trees) in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
; other associated tree species include hickory
Hickory
Trees in the genus Carya are commonly known as hickory, derived from the Powhatan language of Virginia. The genus includes 17–19 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and big nuts...
(genus Carya) and birch
Birch
Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...
(Betula). A predilection for disturbed soil, such as roadsides, has been noted. Amanita authority Cornelis Bas, writing in his extensive 1969 monograph
Monograph
A monograph is a work of writing upon a single subject, usually by a single author.It is often a scholarly essay or learned treatise, and may be released in the manner of a book or journal article. It is by definition a single document that forms a complete text in itself...
on the genus, claimed A. daucipes to be a rare species; subsequent investigations have shown it to be common in oak forests in the eastern United States. The southern end of its distribution extends to Sonora
Sonora
Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....
, Mexico.