Hebeloma gigaspermum

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hebeloma gigaspermum
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Agaricales
Family: Hymenogastraceae
Genus: Hebeloma
Species:
H. gigaspermum
Binomial name
Hebeloma gigaspermum
Gröger & Zschiesch.
Hebeloma gigaspermum
View the Mycomorphbox template that generates the following list
Gills on hymenium
Cap is convex
Hymenium is emarginate
Stipe is bare
Spore print is brown
Ecology is mycorrhizal
Edibility is unknown

Hebeloma gigaspermum is a European species of mushroom in the family Hymenogastraceae.

Taxonomy[edit]

The species Hebeloma gigaspermum was first described only in 1981[1] and is externally similar to the much better-known Hebeloma sacchariolens (being placed in subsection Sacchariolentia of the genus). It is not uncommon in Northern Europe and until 1981 examples were probably simply considered to be H. sacchariolens.[2]

The name gigaspermum means "giant-spored".

Description[edit]

It is a nondescript clay brown or ochre mushroom with somewhat viscid cap, up to about 5 centimetres (2 inches) in diameter, and has a strong sweet odour which has been likened to orange blossom or amyl acetate.[3]

Similar species[edit]

It is similar to H. sacchariolens, and according to one source can be distinguished by

  • its ecology with willow and alder in boggy ground (as opposed to forests and gardens with broad-leaved trees in general), and
  • its large spore size of 13–17 × 7–9 μm (as opposed to 11–14 × 6–8 μm).[2]

As Hebeloma contains poisonous species, H. sacchariolens is not to be recommended for culinary use.[citation needed]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Gröger F, Zschieschang G. (1981). "Hebeloma-Arten mit sacchariolens-Geruch". Zeitschrift für Mykologie (in German). 47: 195–210.
  2. ^ a b Knudsen, Henning; Jan Vesterhout (2008). Funga Nordica. Copenhagen: Nordsvamp. p. 816.
  3. ^ Bon M. The Mushrooms and Toadstools of Britain and North-Western Europe. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 0-340-39935-X.. Bon does not include H. gigaspermum but gives details of H. sacchariolens, especially the smell.