Mitrula elegans (Berk.) Fr.
swamp beacon
Hemiphacidiaceae
Species account author: Ian Gibson.
Extracted from Matchmaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest.
Introduction to the Macrofungi
swamp beacon
Hemiphacidiaceae
Species account author: Ian Gibson.
Extracted from Matchmaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest.
Introduction to the Macrofungi
Species Information
Microscopic:
spores 11-17.5 x (1.5)2-2.5(3) microns, flexible, narrowly cylindric or clavate, occasionally fusoid-cylindric, one-celled or two-celled, lacking a gelatinous sheath; asci 8-spored, 115-123 x 5-7.5 microns, elongate-clavate, apical pores amyloid, croziers present; paraphyses 120-130 x 1.5-3 microns, filiform, slightly enlarged in upper part, (Redhead), spores 11-18 x 1.5-3 microns, narrowly elliptic to cylindric or slightly club-shaped, single-celled or two-celled with a septum, smooth, colorless, (Bessette)
EDIBILITY
unknown
Habitat and Range
SIMILAR SPECIES
Mitrula borealis has been recorded much less often, and is reliably differentiated by its spores. It has been found in Montana close to the Idaho border, but not otherwise confirmed from the Pacific Northwest. Mitrula lunulatospora of eastern North America is distinguished by spores 11-19 x (2)2.5-3.5(4) microns that are lunate to cymbiform [boat-shaped] and inflexible. Mitrula paludosa of Europe has spores are slightly broader (11-19(24) x (2)2.5-3.5(4) microns) than spores of Mitrula elegans. Vibrissea truncorum is somewhat similar but prefers to fruit in running water and is usually submerged - the head is usually orangish to pinkish orange and rounder and more regularly shaped than with Mitrula elegans. See also SIMILAR section of Bryoglossum gracile.Habitat
gregarious, single to cespitose, in shallow water, on decaying wet needles, scales, twigs, leaves, or fruits of Acer saccharinum, Alnus rubra, A. rugosa, Fagus grandifolia, Liquidambar styraciflua, Lysichitum americanum, Osmunda cinnamomea, Pinus monticola, P. strobus, Quercus borealis, Q. prinus, Thuja occidentalis, T. plicata, mats of Calliergonella cuspidatum and Sphagnum recurvum, and logs, mud, algal mats, or other unidentified vegetation, April to September, (Redhead), scattered or in groups in shallow water on decaying leaves, needles, twigs, and debris in woodlands and bogs, April-August, (Bessette for northeastern North America)
Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Corticium subalutacea P. Karst.
Peniophora subalutacea (P. Karst.) Hoehn. & Litsch.