Humaria hemisphaerica is a species of fungus in the family Pyronemataceae. In the UK it has the recommended English name of glazed cup;[1] in North America it has been called the hairy fairy cup[2] or the brown-haired fairy cup.[3] Ascocarps (fruit bodies) are cup-shaped and can be recognized by their smooth, white inner surface and hairy, brown outer surface. The species is ectomycorrhizal and occurs in Europe and North America.
| Humaria hemisphaerica | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Pezizomycetes |
| Order: | Pezizales |
| Family: | Pyronemataceae |
| Genus: | Humaria |
| Species: | H. hemisphaerica
|
| Binomial name | |
| Humaria hemisphaerica (F.H. Wigg.) Fuckel (1870)
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Peziza hemisphaerica | |
Humaria hemisphaerica | |
|---|---|
 | Smooth hymenium |
 | Hymenium attachment is not applicable |
| Lacks a stipe |
 | Ecology is mycorrhizal |
 | Edibility is inedible |
Taxonomy
editThis species was originally described in 1780 by German mycologist Friedrich Heinrich Wiggers as Peziza hemisphaerica. Fries placed it within the Lachnea series, a name he applied to cup fungi with hairy apothecia.[4] In 1870 Leopold Fuckel transferred P. hemisphaerica to the genus Humaria.[5]
The specific epithet is derived from the Latin word hemisphaericum, meaning half a sphere.
Description
editHumaria hemisphaerica has fruiting bodies (apothecia) that typically measure 5 to 30 millimetres (1⁄4 to 1+1⁄8 inches) in diameter by 1 to 1.5 cm (3⁄8 to 5⁄8 in) deep.[6] The fruiting bodies are initially spherical and expand to become cuplike at the fungus matures. This species typically does not have a stipe; when it does, it is present as a small abrupt base. The inner surface of the fruiting body (the hymenium) is white, while the outer hairy surface is brown and covered with brown hairs that taper to a sharp point. These hairs are 400–500 x 15–20 μm. The ascospores are elliptical, hyaline, 20–22 x 10–11 μm, and have 2–3 oil droplets.[7]
Similar species
editSimilar species of Humaria may exist in North America, but are not circumscribed.[8]
There are several other similar cup fungi in the Pyronemataceae family with hairy exteriors. Jafnea semitotsa is larger (2–5 cm in diameter) with a brown interior and a short stipe.[2] The cups of Trichophaea species are usually less than 1 cm across;[8] Trichophaea boudieri and T. bullata are 1–6 millimetres wide, and T. abundans prefers to grow in burnt areas.[2] Chaetothiersia vernalis grows in a more disclike form, and Wilcoxina rehmii produces tiny discs.[8]
Distribution and habitat
editH. hemisphaerica grows year-round on North America's west coast[8] and is common in the Pacific Northwest;[9] further east, it fruits from July to October.[8] Specimens usually grow alone,[8] but also appear scattered or grouped on the ground, and sometimes on decaying wood.[2]
Toxicity
editThe fungus is inedible.[3]
References
edit- ^ Holden L. (April 2022). "English names for fungi April 2022". British Mycological Society. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
- ^ a b c d Arora D. (1986). Mushrooms Demystified: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fleshy Fungi. Berkeley, Calif: Ten Speed Press. pp. 839–840. ISBN 0-89815-169-4.
- ^ a b Roody WC. (2003). Mushrooms of West Virginia and the Central Appalachians. Lexington, Ky: University Press of Kentucky. p. 465. ISBN 0-8131-9039-8.
- ^ Fries EM. (1823). Systema mycologicum. Vol 2. Ex Officina Berlingiana, Lundae, Sweden. 620 pp.
- ^ Fuckel L. (1870). Symbolae mycologicae. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der rheinischen Pilze. Jahrbuch des Nassauischen Vereins für Naturkunde 23–24:1–459.
- ^ Rosanne A. Healy; Huffman, Donald R.; Lois H. Tiffany; George Knaphaus (2008). Mushrooms and Other Fungi of the Midcontinental United States (Bur Oak Guide). Iowa City: University of Iowa Press. p. 279. ISBN 978-1-58729-627-7.
- ^ Tylutki, Edmund E. (1979). Mushrooms of Idaho and the Pacific Northwest. Moscow: University Press of Idaho. p. 90. ISBN 0-89301-062-6.
- ^ a b c d e f Audubon (2023). Mushrooms of North America. Knopf. p. 42. ISBN 978-0-593-31998-7.
- ^ Trudell, Steve; Ammirati, Joe (2009). Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest. Timber Press Field Guides. Portland, OR: Timber Press. p. 288. ISBN 978-0-88192-935-5.