Hi Nick

I thought this is what I am waiting for so long to see in living state. But the spore measurements do not fit.

First: how large are the apos? I guess from the appearance of the bark at least 5 mm?

Second: the spores look to my taste smaller than you measured, I cannot help. If they are actually as large as you say then this is a mystery. Otherwise I would suggest Encoelia glaberrima.

It would certainly be appreciated by Kadri Pärtel to sequence this fine collection, if you don't mind. I will tell her.

Zotto

Hi Zotto,

Yes, good guess! The apothecia are up to 5mm.

I reduced the size of the photos when I made the collage, back in October. Perhaps this made the spores look smaller? I dug out one of the original photos and put a scale on it.

Yes, of course I'll send it off for sequencing.

Nick

 

Update: I just checked the material, which seems in good order. About 50% of the spores are now dead. The dead spores differ significantly in size at around 13 - 16.5 x 3 - 4 (sorry about blurry photo).

What do you think about E.carpini? http://www.librifungorum.org/Image.asp?Nav=yes&FirstPage=10273&LastPage=11422&NextPage=10839

 

you are completely right! This species was totally out of my focus, I never saw it, or images of it. In Rehm the spore size fits better to yours than in Kirschstein and Dennis.

I am unaware of any description after Rehm and Kirschstein, actually. Maybe a new record for Britain? But I see there are two records in FRDBI.

Hi Nick

Kadri would be very pleased to receive this sample. She wrote me that saw this species only from a 100 years old one from Stockholm. So she asks me to give you here her address, "which is open to receive fresh encoelioids" [or those being not older than a couple of years]:

Kadri Pärtel

Chair of Mycology

Department of Botany

Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences

University of Tartu

Chemicum

Ravila 14a

50411 Tartu

Estonia

Hi Nick (and Zotto),

Encoelia carpini is one of the hundred species targeted by RBG Kew's Lost and Found project (which I started working on last week - http://fungi.myspecies.info/content/lost-found-fungi-project ).

We'd definitely be interested in the details of your collection, which could help a lot in searching for further populations of this species. We'd also be very interested in any other collections of this species in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, if anyone else has recently found it but not submitted it to the FRDBI. Or any details that anyone has of this species elsewhere in the world?

We will be doing sequencing later on in the year, but I wouldn't want to poach a specimen from Kadri Pärtel... (maybe a tiny piece?). I've emailed you privately, but thought I'd comment here in case anyone else has any more data on this species.

Cheers,

Brian

Hello Nick,

In my herbarium I have two collections that seem to be identical to your collection. Mine were from the early 1970s from Ham Street (Fagg's Wood) near Ashford in Kent. In both cases the fubgus was growing on dead attached brancches of Carpinus quite high up. Both collections were seen by RWG Dennis. At the time , RWG preferred the name as Encoelia carpini, but were later transferred to E. gleberrima.

Let me know if you want either packet sent to you for comparison

All the best,

Peter

Hi all,

Great!

I'll send some of the collection to Kadri Pärtel and some to Kew (Brian I've replied to your email) I hope someone is succesful in getting a sequence!

Dear Peter, I think I can see the relevant records on FRDBI - I'd love to have a look at the material (it seems to me E.glabberima and E.carpini should be easily seperable by spore size, even in dead material).

Thanks everyone,

Nick