black milking bonnet

Description:

Like all the bonnet mushrooms, this has a delicate look with thin stem and a cap just 1-2cm across. The cap is dark brown, almost black, with a concolorous stem which exudes white latex if broken ( http://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/bla... ), ( http://www.commanster.eu/commanster/Mush... ), ( http://users.telenet.be/jimmydes/Educati... )

Habitat:

location: North America, Europe edibility: Inedible fungus colour: Grey to beige normal size: Less than 5cm cap type: Conical or nearly so stem type: Stem much longer than cap diameter flesh: Flesh exudes white or watery latex (milk) when cut spore colour: White, cream or yellowish habitat: Grows on the ground, Found in fields, lawns or on roadsides , Grows on plant material/manure Mycena galopus (Pers. ex Fr.) Kummer Weissmilchender Helmling Mycène à pied laiteux Milking Bonnet. Cap 1–2cm across, conical or bell-shaped, grey-brown with umber centre, distinctly lined. Stem 50–100 x 2–3mm, grey, exuding white latex when broken, base covered in white cottony fibres. Flesh very thin, white. Taste mild, smell not distinctive. Gills adnate, white to grey. Cheilo- and pleurocystidia conspicuous, fusoid, thin-walled. Spores ellipsoid, amyloid, 11–13 x 5–6um. Habitat amongst leaf litter in woods, hedgerows and on path sides. Season summer to autumn. Very common. Edible but not worthwhile -avoid. Distribution, America and Europe.

Notes:

Mycena galopus is a saprobic fungus, and plays an important role in forest ecosystems as a decomposer of leaf litter. It has been estimated in the UK to account for a large portion of the decomposition of the autumn leaf litter in British woodlands. It is able to break down the lignin and cellulose components of leaf litter. Grown in axenic culture in the laboratory, the fungus mycelium has been shown to degrade (in addition to lignin and cellulose) hemicelluloses, protein, soluble carbohydrates, and purified xylan and pectin using enzymes such as polyphenol oxidases, cellulases, and catalase. It is particularly adept at breaking down lignin, which is the second most abundant renewable organic compound in the biosphere, after cellulose. Research also suggests that the fungus weathers soil minerals, making them more available to mycorrhizal plants. Phosphorus, an important macronutrient influencing plant growth, typically occurs in primary minerals like apatite, or other organic complexes, and its low solubility often results in low phosphorus availability in soil. The biological activity of M. galopus mycelium can increase the availability of phosphorus and other nutrients, both as a result of soil acidification due to cation uptake and via the release of weathering agents such low molecular mass organic acids. Studies have shown that the fungus is sensitive to low concentrations of sulphite (SO32-), a byproduct of sulphur dioxide pollution, suggesting that this pollution can be toxic to the growth of the fungus (and the subsequent decomposition of leaf litter) at environmentally relevant concentrations