Aureofungus
Encyclopedia
Aureofungus is an extinct monotypic
genus
of gilled
fungus
in the order Agaricales
. At present it contains the single species
Aureofungus yaniguaensis.
The genus is solely known from the early Miocene
, Burdigalian
stage, Dominican amber
deposits on the island of Hispaniola
. Aureofungus is one of only four known agarics fungus species known in the fossil record and the third to be described from Dominican amber.
fossil, which is a single fruiting body currently residing in the private collection owned by Yale Goldman of Connecticut
USA. The specimen was collected in August 2000 from the Yanigua Mine, El Valle in the eastern Dominican Republic
. It was first studied by a group of researchers led by Dr. David Hibbett
of the Clark University
. Hibbett et al published their 2003 type description in the journal Mycologia
. The generic epithet Aureofungus is Latin
in derivation and means "golden fungus" while the specific epithet "yaniguaensis" was coined by the authors from "Yanigua" in recognition of the type locality.
When described Aureofungus yaniguaensis was the fourth species of agarics fungus to be described. Two species Coprinites dominicana and Protomycena electra
are also from the amber mines of the Dominican Republic, while the third species Archaeomarasmius leggeti
is from the older Cretaceous
age New Jersey Amber. With the 2007 publication of a fifth extinct agaric species, Palaeoagaracites antiquus
the age for the order was pushed back to the Albian
(approximately 100 Ma).
and associated basidiospore
s. The pileus
is 3 millimetre (0.118110236220472 in) in diameter and has a convex shape sporting a broad raised central region. The lightly textured flesh is yellow-brown in coloration and sports a striated, incurved margin. The lamellae or gills are subdistant and lacking lamellulae, short gills which do not reach the edge of the pileus. The pileus is centered on the stipe
, which is 0.8 by long and lacking the volva
, annulus
and any rhizoids. The basidiospores associated with the fruiting body are grouped in masses and appear to have been produced by the fruiting body after entombment in the resin. Each basidiospore is broadly elliptic and approximately 4.0μm by 3.3μm.
These combined characters indicate a possible relation to the modern Tricholomataceae
or some of the "dusky-spored taxa" such as Coprinellus disseminatus
. However the thickness of the amber entombing the specimen prevented study finer details, such as spore ornamentation and pileus texture, which would have clarified the relations. As such Hibbett et al left the placement of Aureofungus as Agaricales incertae sedis
. Despite the lack of visible details, enough characters are present to distinguish Aureofungus from the three other known amber fossil species.
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of gilled
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...
fungus
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 order 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...
. At present it contains the single species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
Aureofungus yaniguaensis.
The genus is solely known from the early Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
, Burdigalian
Burdigalian
The Burdigalian is, in the geologic timescale, an age or stage in the early Miocene. It spans the time between 20.43 ± 0.05 Ma and 15.97 ± 0.05 Ma...
stage, Dominican amber
Dominican amber
Dominican amber is amber from the Dominican Republic. Resin from the extinct species Hymenaea protera is the source of Dominican amber and probably of most amber found in the tropics....
deposits on the island of Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
. Aureofungus is one of only four known agarics fungus species known in the fossil record and the third to be described from Dominican amber.
History and classification
The genus is known only from the holotypeHolotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
fossil, which is a single fruiting body currently residing in the private collection owned by Yale Goldman of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
USA. The specimen was collected in August 2000 from the Yanigua Mine, El Valle in the eastern Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
. It was first studied by a group of researchers led by Dr. David Hibbett
David S. Hibbett
David Hibbett is an associate professor in biology at Clark University. He is considered one of today's leading researchers "in the analysis of fungal relationships through DNA analysis." At Clark he concentrates his lab work in evolutionary biology and ecology of Fungi.He spent 1991 as a Science...
of the Clark University
Clark University
Clark University is a private research university and liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts.Founded in 1887, it is the oldest educational institution founded as an all-graduate university. Clark now also educates undergraduates...
. Hibbett et al published their 2003 type description in the journal Mycologia
Mycologia
Mycologia is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes papers on all aspects of the fungi, including lichens. It first appeared as a bimonthly journal in January of 1909, published by the New York Botanical Garden under the editorship of William Murrill. It became the official journal of...
. The generic epithet Aureofungus is Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
in derivation and means "golden fungus" while the specific epithet "yaniguaensis" was coined by the authors from "Yanigua" in recognition of the type locality.
When described Aureofungus yaniguaensis was the fourth species of agarics fungus to be described. Two species Coprinites dominicana and Protomycena electra
Protomycena
Protomycena is an extinct monotypic genus of gilled fungus in the Mycenaceae family, of order Agaricales. At present it contains the single species Protomycena electra, known from a single specimen collected in an amber mine in the Cordillera Septentrional area of the Dominican Republic...
are also from the amber mines of the Dominican Republic, while the third species Archaeomarasmius leggeti
Archaeomarasmius
Archaeomarasmius is an extinct genus of gilled fungus in the Agaricales family Tricholomataceae, containing the single species Archaeomarasmius leggetti. It is known from two fruit bodies recovered from amber, one consisting of a complete cap with a broken stem, the other consisting of a fragment...
is from the older Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
age New Jersey Amber. With the 2007 publication of a fifth extinct agaric species, Palaeoagaracites antiquus
Palaeoagaracites
Palaeoagaracites is an extinct monotypic genus of gilled fungus in the order Agaricales. At present it contains the single species Palaeoagaracites antiquus....
the age for the order was pushed back to the Albian
Albian
The Albian is both an age of the geologic timescale and a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch/series. Its approximate time range is 112.0 ± 1.0 Ma to 99.6 ± 0.9 Ma...
(approximately 100 Ma).
Description
The holotype of Aureofungus is a fruiting bodyMushroom
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...
and associated basidiospore
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...
s. The pileus
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...
is 3 millimetre (0.118110236220472 in) in diameter and has a convex shape sporting a broad raised central region. The lightly textured flesh is yellow-brown in coloration and sports a striated, incurved margin. The lamellae or gills are subdistant and lacking lamellulae, short gills which do not reach the edge of the pileus. The pileus is centered on the stipe
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...
, which is 0.8 by long and lacking the volva
Volva (mycology)
The volva is a mycological term to describe a cup-like structure at the base of a mushroom that is a remnant of the universal veil. This macrofeature is important in wild mushroom identification due to it being an easily observed, taxonomically significant feature which frequently signifies a...
, annulus
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...
and any rhizoids. The basidiospores associated with the fruiting body are grouped in masses and appear to have been produced by the fruiting body after entombment in the resin. Each basidiospore is broadly elliptic and approximately 4.0μm by 3.3μm.
These combined characters indicate a possible relation to the modern Tricholomataceae
Tricholomataceae
The Tricholomataceae are a large family of mushrooms within the Agaricales. A classic "wastebasket taxon", the Tricholomataceae is inclusive of any white-, yellow-, or pink-spored genera in the Agaricales not already classified as belonging to the Amanitaceae, Lepiotaceae, Hygrophoraceae,...
or some of the "dusky-spored taxa" such as Coprinellus disseminatus
Coprinellus disseminatus
Coprinellus disseminatus is a species of mushroom in the Psathyrellaceae family. Unlike most other Coprinoid mushrooms, C. disseminatus does not dissolve into black ink in maturity. The species was given its current name in 1939 by Jakob Emanuel Lange...
. However the thickness of the amber entombing the specimen prevented study finer details, such as spore ornamentation and pileus texture, which would have clarified the relations. As such Hibbett et al left the placement of Aureofungus as Agaricales incertae sedis
Incertae sedis
, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...
. Despite the lack of visible details, enough characters are present to distinguish Aureofungus from the three other known amber fossil species.