Coltricia spathulata (Hook.) Murrill

  • Authority

    Fidalgo, Oswaldo & Fidalgo, Maria E. 1968. Polyporaceae from Venezuela. I. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 17 (2): 1--34.

  • Family

    Hymenochaetaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Coltricia spathulata (Hook.) Murrill

  • Description

    Species Description - MACROSCOPIC CHARACTERS. Sporophore: annual, thin, usually laterally stipitate to eccentric, rarely mesopodal, rigid and of hght weight when dry. stipe: very short to long, often rooted, tough, much irregular, often branched and flattened, surface velutinous-spongy, cinnamon-brown, more or less MP-14K9 (Bunny), 0.1-3(-5.5) cm long and 0.1-0.5(-1) cm thick, pileus: small, flabelliform, spathulate to reniform, often separated into several lobes, conchate, slightly depressed at the center, coriaceous-fibrous, rigid when dry, 0.4-1.5 (-5) cm long, 0.5-3(-8) cm wide and 0.1-0.2(-0.3) cm thick, Abhymenial Surface: tomentose at the beginning and then silky, zonate to rarely azonate, radially striate to sometimes wrinkled, ferrugineous-fulvous, yellowish-brown to cinnamon-brown, MP-15C10 (Madrid) to 1MP-14G9, near Wigwam +. margin: thin and acute, undulate to lobate, inflexed in dry specimens, somewhat lighter colored than the pilear surface; many times from the margin starts another pileus. context: clearly duplex, separated into two layers by a thin black line, coriaceous, very thin, usually less than 1(-2) mm thick, yellowish-brown, nearly concolorous with the abhymenial surface; in KOH the trama turns black, tubes: always in one layer, usually less than 1 mm deep, dark yellow to rhubarb, MP-14K7 (Gold) to MP-15E8 (Sphinx). POROID surface: concolorous with the tubes; pores small, angular, elongated, 6-7(-9) per mm, 90-140 X 75-125 µ diam; dissepiments thin, entire, 30-501-75) µ thick. MICROSCOPIC CHARACTERS. Pilear surface: represented by an irregular, loose trichoderm formed by the generative hyphae of the upper portion of the context, context: hyphal system monomitic; generative hyphae yellow to yellowish-brown, thick-walled, sparsely branched, simple-septate with no clamp connections; at the upper part of the context the outer hyphae show an anticlinal orientation and have sparse branches, broad lumen and 3-5(-6.5) µ diam; from the median portion of the context the hyphae start gradually to be less oriented, until they have no distinct orientation at the lower part of the context, having more branches, narrower lumen and smaller diameter, (2-)2.5-3.5 µ; the black line of the context, 25-40 µ thick is represented by a denser arrangement of the hyphae, which become more branched and so closely aggregated that in section it appears as a pseudoparenchymatic region, dissepiments: hyphal system monomitic; generative hyphae 2.5-3.5 µ diam closely arranged, hymenium: setae, cystidia and hyphal pegs not seen; basidia very short, subclavate, hyaline, 4-sterigmate, 5-6(-7.5) X 3-4(-4.5) µ, with short sterigmata; basidiospores yellowish to pale yellowish-brown, subglobose to slightly oblong-ellipsoid, smooth, with distinct wall, non-amyloid, very briefly apiculate, (2.5-)3-1 X 2-2.5(-3) µ.

    Distribution and Ecology - Distribution. This species was reported by Murrill (1915: 73) as "frequent throughout on soil or dead wood," but it is not well represented in the herbaria. Coltricia spathulata seems to be widespread in the American tropics, although not very frequent. From South America we have seen specimens from Brazil (Amazonas, Guanabara, Rio Grande do Sul and Sao Paulo), Ecuador, French Guiana and Venezuela; from Central America, from British Honduras; from the West Indies, from Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Bahamas and Bermudas and from North America, from Mexico (Jalapa and Vera Cruz) and U. S. A. (Florida). Murrill (1908: 93) listed Coltricia spathulata from Mexico, Honduras, Bahamas, Peru, Guiana and Brazil. Theissen (1911: 23, as Polystictus luteonitidus) reported it from Brazil (Amazonas, Goyaz and Rio Grande do Sul). Lowe (1952: 50) mentioned it from U.S.A. (Florida), while Fidalgo, Fidalgo and Furtado (1965: 58) found it in Brazil (Sfio Paulo). Dennis (1965: 237) has hsted it also from Panama, Colombia and Bolivia; Bonar (1939: 204) has reported it from Galapagos Is. (Indefatigable and Albemarle). It has been already reported from Venezuela: Puerto Zamuro, Gaillard 38, May 1887 (Patouillard & Gaillard, 1888: 30-31, as Polyporus multi fonn is] and Miranda, Guatopo forest, 800m alt, Dmnis 1462, Jun 22, 1958 (Dennis, 1965: 237, as Polystictus).

  • Discussion

    Figs. 3-4.

    Boletus spathulatus Hook, in Kunth, Syn. Pl. 1: 9. 1822.

    Polyporus spathulatus (Hook, in Kunth) Fr., Epicr. Syst. Mycol. 443. 1838.

    Polystictus spathulatus (Hook, in Kunth) Cooke, Grevillea 14(71): 78 1886- Dennis Kew Bull. 19(2): 237. 1965.

    Microporus spathulatus (Hook, in Kunth) Kuntze, Rev. Gen. Pl. 3(3): 497. 1898.

    Polyporus midtiformis Mont., Ann. Sci. Xat. Bot. IV. 1: 125. 1854; Pat. & Gaill., Bull. Soc. Mycol. Fr. 4(1): 30-31. 1888. Type, Leprieur 939, around Cayenne, French Guiana (isotype, NY).

    Polystictus multiformis (Mont.) Cooke, Grevillea 14(71): 79. 1886.

    Microporus multiformis (Mont.) Kuntze, Rev. G m . Pl. 3(3): 496. 1898; Fidalgo Acta Biol. Venez. (in press).

    Xanthochrous multiformis (Mont.) Pat., Essai Taxon. Hymenom. 100. 1900.

    Pelloporus multiformis (Mont.) Torrend, Broteria Bot. 22: 9. 1926.

    Polyporus luteo-nitidus Berk., Jour. Bot. & Kew Mi.sc. 8: 175. 1856. Type, R. Spruce. from Panure, Amazonas State, Brazil (merotype, NY).

    Polystictus lul(M)-nitidus (Berk.) Cooke, Grevillea 14(71): 77. 1886.

    Microporus luteo-nitidn.s (Berk.) Kuntze, Rev. Gen. Pl. 3(3): 496. 1898.

    Pellouorus lulco-nitidus (Berk.) Torrend, Broteria Bot. 22: 9. 1926.

    ?Polyporus vcrac-crucis Berk, ex S.'kw., S>11. Fung. 6: 89. 1888 Type from Vora Cruz Mexico (merotype, NY).

    Polyporus verae-crucis Berk, in Cooke, Gnnillea 13(67): 83. 1885, nomen nudum.

    ?Polyporus verae-crucis Berk, in herb. 2439, nomen nudum.

    ?Phaeolopsis verae-crucis (Berk, ex Sacc.) Murr., Bull. Torrey Club 32(9): 490. 1905.

    Type. Holotype collected by A. von Humboldt at K; merotype, NY.

    Type Locality. Near Loxa ( = Loja), southwest province of Ecuador.

    Basionym. Boletus spathulatus Hook, in Kunth, 1822.

    Discussion. This is a very polymorphic species; the shape of the pileus and the length and shape of the stipe may vary considerably, even in the same collection. The Venezuelan collections are represented by very small fruiting bodies (Fig. 3) ; we have compared them with a merotype of Boletus spathulatus at NY; they are conspecific. The merotype has 6-7 pores per m m and is fertile, showing pale yellowish-brown, subglobose basidiospores, 2.5-3.5 X 2-2.5 µ. We also compared the merotype with an isotype of Polyporus nndtiformis, a merotype of Pluteo-nitidus and with a merotype of P. verae-crucis, all at NY. They all seem to be conspecific with Coltricia spathulata. The types of P. multiformis and P. luteonitidus represent the common form of C. spathulata, with fruiting bodies ranging from 1-2 mm thick, 6-7 pores per m m and subglobose basidiospores, 2.5-3.5 X 2-2.5 µ. The type of P verae-crucis is a more robuste specimen, with fruiting bodies 2-3 mm thick, 6-8 pores per mm and subglobose to oblong-ellipsoid, pale yellowish-brown basidiospores, 3-4(-5) X (2-)2.5-3 µ. The merotype of P. verae-crucis has the lower portion of the tubes parasitized by a fungus with hyaline spores and apparently Murrill (1905: 490) mistook the contaminant's spores for the basidiospores of P. verae-crucis when he described the genus Phaeolopsis. Of interest is a collection at NY from Jalapa, Mexico, determined by Murrih (1912: 138) as C. spathulata that shows also oblong-ellipsoid basidiospores slightly larger than the type, 3-4.5 X 2-2.5 p, resembling the type of Polyporus verae-crucis. An additional collection at NY from British Honduras determined as P. verae-crucis by Murrill (1915: 53) is not conspecific, being a completely remote species with hyaline hyphae and basidiospores. Although the type of P. verae-crucis and the additional Mexican collection of C. spathulata have basidiospores slightly larger and less subglobose than those found in the most common collections of C. spathulata, they may belong to the species complex; the larger size of the basidiospores may just represent a deviation of this attribute found in Mexican populations. Bresadola (1916: 228) had referred P verae-crucis as a synonym of P. luteonitidus, probably because in herbaria the thicker and larger specimens of C. spathulata are usually determined as P. luteo-nitidus, even though the type of the latter is not a very thick specimen.

    Lowe (1952a: 50) reported a collection of Coltricia spathulata from Florida, U.S.A., with broadly ellipsoid basidiospores, 2.5-3 X 1.5-2 µ. Fidalgo, Fidalgo and Furtado (1965: 58) reported a collection from Brazilian "cerrados," Sao Paulo State, Brazil, with broad elliptic to subglobose basidiospores, (2.5-) 3-3.5(-4) X (1.5-) 2-3 µ.

    The striking characteristics of this rather uncommon species of Coltricia are: the minute pores, the duplex context with a distinct black line, the short subclavate basidia and the small subglobose basidiospores.