Psathyrella aquatica
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Psathyrella aquatica is a species of fungus from Oregon, first described in the journal Mycologia in 2010.[1] It represents the first ever report of a gilled basidiomycete fruiting underwater.
Taxonomy
Discovery
It was found by Southern Oregon University professor Robert Coffan in the Rogue River in the U.S. state of Oregon.[1] Coffan and his colleagues, Darlene Southworth and Jonathan Frank, found the mushroom in 2005. The biology department at Southern Oregon University confirmed that the mushroom was a unique discovery.[1] Once their research was published, it was named one of the most significant species discovered in 2010.[2] The species epithet , aquatica, is a Latin word meaning water or watery (relating to water, aquatic), in reference to the mushroom's habitat.[3]
They have so far been discovered in a 1 kilometer stretch of the river, and have an observed fruiting season of mid-June to late September[4] Many scientists were skeptical about describing this mushroom as a new species because of the hundreds of similar looking species in the family Psathyrellaceae.[2][5]
Less than 1% of aquatic fungi are assumed to be discovered yet, and many are assumed to be microscopic, with only a small fraction thought to produce fruiting bodies.[6]
Description
The fruiting body consists of a small convex cap and a long stipe.[1] Its cap is brown, convex, and has gills underneath.[1] The young mushroom develops a veil, which is lost as the mushroom grows to maturity.[1] The mushroom's stipe appears to be quite strong, and is anchored up to 1.6 feet (0.5 m) deep in sediment, in order to stand up to the fast-moving river currents where it is primarily found.[1] The stipe is covered in thin hair like structures.[1] Spores released by the gills stay in gas bubbles underneath the gills before floating to the top of the water to spread.[1] Underwater gills and ballistospores suggest that its underwater adaption is a relatively recent one.[1]
When synthetically grown, P. aquatica are known to only fruit (produce stipe and cap) underwater. A study done in 2014 by one of the original authors of the discovery paper showed that this species only produces sporocarps when completely submerged under cold water.[7]
Habitat
The mushrooms are found growing out of water-logged wood, silt, and gravel, a fine volcanic substrate, and were observed growing from youth to maturity completely underwater over 11 weeks.[1] The mushroom grows submerged under the fast, cold, running water of the river.[1] The water is spring-fed, aerated, and contains lots of woody debris and is shallow in depth.[1] They are found growing about half a meter underneath the water.[4] The mushroom is also found growing on land on either grassy banks or on gravel or water-logged wood next to the river.[4]
Ecology
Though not enough is known about the species to consider it edible, scientist assume that it is a food source for small insects in the river.[2] Though the river has low levels of nitrogen, nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria near mushroom discovery sites suggests they might provide a source of nitrogen.[8]
References
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- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Latin Definition for: Aquaticus, aquatica, aquaticum (ID: 4328)—Latin Dictionary and Grammar Resources—Latdict. (n.d.). Retrieved April 27, 2022, from http://www.latin-dictionary.net/definition/4328/aquaticus-aquatica-aquaticum
- ↑ a b c Underwater_Mushroom – Mycological Society of America. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://msafungi.org/underwater_mushroom/
- ↑ Mushrooms underwater. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://fishbio.com/field-notes/wildlife-ecology/mushrooms-underwater
- ↑ Elkhateeb, W., Thomas, P., Zohri, A.-N., Daba, G., & Wen, T.-C. (2021). Highlights on aquatic fungi and mushrooms ecology and biotechnology, with description of the rarely isolated aquatic mushroom Psathyrella aquatic as a novel taxon. Research Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry., 10.
- ↑ Frank, J. L. (2014). Psathyrella aquatica Fruiting in vitro. Northwest Science, 88(1), 44–48. Script error: No such module "CS1 identifiers".
- ↑ Southern Oregon University: College of Arts and Sciences. (2008, August 19). https://web.archive.org/web/20080819151450/http://www.sou.edu/cas/connections/connections0006.html
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