Clavulinopsis helvola ( Persoon 1797: 69 ) Corner (1950: 372)

Furtado, Ariadne N. M., Daniëls, Pablo P. & Neves, Maria Alice, 2016, New species and new records of Clavariaceae (Agaricales) from Brazil, Phytotaxa 253 (1), pp. 1-26 : 14-15

Clavulinopsis helvola ( Persoon 1797: 69) Corner (1950: 372)

Basidiomata ( Fig. 1j ) 6.0 × 0.1−0.5 cm, unbranched, solitary. Clavula light yellow (2A5) to orange yellow (4B7), fading to buff orange (6A5), subcylindric, apex blunt; stipe 10 × 1.0−2.0 mm, distinct at the narrower basal part of the basidioma, pale yellow (4A3). Context white to yellowish, solid, subfloccose, waxy; smell and taste absent.

Basidiospores ( Fig. 11 ac) 5.0−7.0 × 4.2−6.5 μm (Q=1.29), subglobose to broadly ellipsoid, hyaline, thin-walled, uniguttulate, sharply angular to tuberculous, with spines or warts 1.0−1.5 μm long, inamyloid; hilar appendage indistinct. Basidia ( Fig. 11b ) 38−59 × 7.0−11 μm, subclavate, clamped; (2−)4 sterigmata 7.0−9.0 μm long. Cystidia absent. Hymenium 70−125 μm thick, absent in stipe. Subhymenium 25−50 μm thick, composed of closely interwoven hyphae 3.0−4.0 μm wide, clamped; tortuous; basidia in clusters or bouquets. Context with subparallel hyphae; branching and anastomosing abundantly, of two different widths: 5.0−10 μm wide, slightly constricted at the septa, and 2.5−3.0 μm wide, not inflated, both interweaving, hyaline, clamped and thin-walled.

Habitat and distribution:—In the Atlantic Forest this species is found on soil with litter. In Brazil it is known only from Santa Catarina (present study). Also known from South Africa, Australia, Japan, USA ( Corner 1950), India ( Thind & Rattan 1967), Switzerland ( Breitenbach & Kränzlin 1986), Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden ( Hansen & Knudsen 1997), France ( Gerault 2005), Estonia ( Shiryaev 2009), Spain (Olariaga 2009) and Tahiland (Maneevun & Sanoamuang 2010).

Specimens examined:— BRAZIL. Santa Catarina: Florianópolis, Morro da Lagoa, Trilha do Jipe, 27º59'43"S, 49º47'83"W, 01 July 2013, R.C.S. Friedrich 34 (FLOR 56177).

Additional specimens examined:— UGANDA. Kyetume: Kyagwe, Banana plantation, 1915, R.A. Dummer n.n. (BPI 294872). INDIA. Jabber Khet: Mussoorie, Uttar Pradesh, 07 September 1968, S.S. Rattan n.n. (BPI 294868).

BRAZIL. Rio Grande do Sul: Parecí Novo, 1918, J.E. Rick n.n. (BPI 294557).

Remarks:— Clavulinopsis helvola is easily recognized by its unbranched, club-shaped, yellow basidiomata and spiny basidiospores ( Petersen 1968). This is the only species of Clavulinopsis with spiny basidiospores. Although the basidiospores of this species vary in size (4.0−7.2 × 3.6−7.0 μm), our measurements agree with those observed by several other authors ( Corner 1950, Petersen 1968, Pegler & Young 1985, Adamčĭk 2009). Petersen (1978) included Cs. helvola in a subgenus of Ramariopsis (= Ramariopsis helvola (Pers.: Fr.) R.H. Petersen) based on the basidiospores with thick tuberculous ornamentation. Pegler & Young (1985) recognized several types of basidiospore ultrastructure and observed that all members of Ramariopsis s. str. have warts formed by the tunica. Spines of Ramariopsis helvola are formed from the growth of the corium. Therefore, the species is placed in Clavulinopsis . Clavulinopsis laeticolor (Berk. & M.A. Curtis) R.H. Petersen is similar to Cs. helvola based on the color of the basidioma; however, Clavulinopsis laeticolor has smooth, ellipsoid, pip-shaped basidiospores ( Petersen 1968).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Photographs of basidiomata in the field. a Clavaria diverticulata (ACM 1044); b. Ca. fragilis (ACM 1041); c. Ca. fumosa (ACM 598); d. Ca. gibbsiae (ANMF 484); e. Ca. subglobosa (MAN 732); f. Ca. zollingeri (ANMF 365); g. Clavulinopsis amoena (KEL 21); h. Cs. aurantiocinnabarina (ANMF 382); i. Cs. dimorphica (ACM 1051); j. Cs. helvola (KEL 34); k. Cs. imperata (ANMF 482); l. Cs. laeticolor (ANMF 495); m. Cs. spiralis (MAN 1077); n. Ramariopsis kunzei (ACM 596). Bars = 1.0 cm. Photographs by Altielys C. Magnago (A, B, C, I, N) and Raquel Friedrich (G).

FIGURE 11. Microcharacters of Clavulinopsis helvola (KEL 34). a. Basidiospores; b. Basidia; c. SEM of the basidiospores. Bars (a, b) = 10 μm (c) = 2.0 μm.