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Species Information
Summary: Features include 1) a small, underground, lobed, irregular fruitbody, 2) a thin, white to buff peridium that often disappears, 3) a spore mass that is white at first, then buff to salmon and finally orange-brown, often exuding a sticky latex, and 4) microscopic characters including very large spores (zygospores) that are enclosed in a spore mantle that is mostly in a single layer with a spiral, sinuous pattern. The description is derived from Gerdemann(1) except where noted. In is widespread but infrequent in North America and Europe, (Gerdemann). It is abundant among false truffles in the Pacific Northwest, (Trappe(13)).
Collections were examined from WA, OR, ID, and CA, (Gerdemann). It was collected from Victoria BC by Jake Kerr and identified by Shannon Berch. It is distributed in North America and Europe, (Trappe(13)). It is found in the United Kingdom (Hawker(1)).
Outer Surface: 0.3-2.5cm across, when immature mostly spherical to somewhat spherical and white, when mature "mostly lobed and convoluted and buff to dull orange-brown with soil particles frequently adhering to surface"; peridium "thin, white, becoming buff, often disappearing on mature specimens"
Interior: at first white, becoming buff or salmon and finally orange-brown when fully mature, "often exuding a sticky latex when cut"
Odor: not distinctive (Trappe, M.(3))
Microscopic: zygospores 52-120 x 42-99 microns, round to elliptic or oboval, usually longer than broad, containing oil droplets 2-3 microns across, spore wall 3.5-7 microns thick, consisting of a thin, deep yellow to brown outer wall 1-2 microns thick "that is yellow to pale orange in Melzer''s reagent" and a thick, colorless to light yellow inner wall up to 6 microns thick; spores enclosed in a tightly adherent hyphal mantle 5-20 microns thick, "usually a single layer of hyphae encircling each spore in a spiral, sinuous manner, with lateral walls pressed together", "in cross section bases of hyphae (adjacent to spore) and lateral walls greatly thickened, the thickening becoming progressively thinner toward the outer, generally thin-walled hyphal surface, thickened lateral walls of two adjacent hyphae coalesced to form pointed flame-shaped projections" from spore; gametangia "up to 35(40) microns broad, thin-walled and ephemeral, not visible on mature spores, parallel, of unequal size, with the zygospore budding from the tip of the larger of the two", (Gerdemann), spores 52-120 x 42-99 microns, round to elliptic or oboval, "each one enclosed within tightly appressed hyphae that in face view look like a fingerprint and in cross section like a crown of flames", (Trappe, M.(3))
Habitat / Range
hypogeous [underground] or rarely subhypogeous, "in coniferous forests from coastal areas to relatively low elevations in the mountains and in seedling beds of a tree nursery"; spring, early summer, fall, and early winter; occurring among ectomycorrhizae of Pinaceae, (Gerdemann), most often found "in young stands of trees in mixed woods"; sometimes "fruits by the tens of thousands in conifer nurseries"; occurs year-round, (Trappe, M.(3))
Similar Species
Endogone lactiflua and E. flammicorona differ in the following ways: 1) the sporocarp of E. lactiflua is nearly spherical to elliptic or kidney-shaped, rarely lobed or irregular, whereas the sporocarp of E. flammicorona is generally lobed or irregular, 2) spores of E. lactiflua are round to elliptic, generally wider than long with a width of 94-190 microns, whereas spores of E. flammicorona are round, elliptic, or obovoid, usually longer than wide with a width of 42-99 microns, 3) the outer spore wall of E. lactiflua becomes dark reddish brown in Melzer''s reagent, whereas the outer spore wall of E. flammicorona becomes yellow to pale orange in Melzer''s reagent, 4) the spore mantle of E. lactiflua consists of several layers of interwoven hyphae, appears netted in cross-section, and separates readily from spore walls, whereas the spore mantle of E. flammicorona generally consists of a single layer of spirally arranged hyphae, appears as flame-shaped projections in cross-section, and adheres tightly to spore walls, and 5) the gametangia of E. lactiflua are thick-walled, often persistent, and up to 80 microns wide, whereas the gametangia of E. flammicorona are thin-walled, ephemeral and generally not visible on mature specimens, and not broader than 40 microns, (Gerdemann).
