MYCOLOGY

• The science which deals with

the study of fungi.

• From the Gr.

mykes=mushroom, fungus +
logos = discourse
 MYCOLOGY
• Mycology is the branch of biology
that is concerned with the study of
fungi, including their genetic and
biochemical properties.

their taxonomy and their use to

humans as a source of medicine and
food.

As well as their dangers, such as

poisoning or infection.
 FIELD MYCOLOGY
• Devoted to the identification and study of
wild fungi in the country.
• There is a design to aid the students
identification with user-friendly keys, many
color illustrations, and tips on where and
how to look for interesting and less
commonly recorded species.

It guides students through the techniques required

for identifying fungi in the field and under the
microscope, provides reviews and guides to
literature, and brings students up-to-date with
local and national recording and conservation
schemes.
All of this, plus the latest mycological news and
events from the Philippines, SE Asia, and around
the world will be presented.
 FIELD MYCOLOGY
This course will give an update on the
ecology, morphology, evolution and
taxonomy of larger fungi, but has its main
focus on field mycology and
identification based on morphological
characters.

Methods for studying fungi in the field

will be demonstrated, and species
identification involving microscopy and
dichotomous keys will be presented.

The course has a hands-on approach to

learning.
 WHAT ARE FUNGI?
• The fungi are a large group of eukaryotic, spore-
bearing and achlorophyllous organisms which
constitute an abundant element of terrestrial biota
in the Philippines.

• They are therefore unable to manufacture their

own food, and as such, they have to obtain
energy from the surroundings.

• Those which derive energy from dead organic remains,

called substratum are saprophytes; and those which
absorb nourishment from living tissues, called host, are
parasites.
 FUNGI
• The fungi are now belonged
to Kingdom Fungi in the five-
kingdom system of
classification.

• Other kingdoms are

Monerans, Protistans,
Plantae and Animalia.
• Study of fungi, including mushrooms FUNGI AS SCIENCE
and yeast.
• Many fungi are useful in medicine and
industry.
• Mycological research has led to the
development of such antibiotic drugs
as penicillin, streptomycin, and
tetracycline.
• Mycology also has important
applications in the dairy, wine, and
baking industries and in the production
of dyes and inks.

Mycologist - a person who specializes in

the study of fungi.
 FATHER OF MYCOLOGY
• The founder of the science of Mycology is Pier’
Antonio Micheli, an Italian botanist who, in 1729
published Nova Plantarum Genera.

Born in Florence, Italy, on December 11, 1697

His greatest claim to fame was that he discovered the
existence of fungal spores, thus beginning the process of
dispelling some of the many myths about where fungi came
from.

His proof was simple: having placed spores on slices of melon, Micheli noted
that the fungal fruit bodies that appeared on the fruit were identical to the
ones from which he had taken the original spores.
 Early Records of Philippine Fungi and Expeditions

Mycological consciousness in the Philippines can be

traced back during the early expeditions, and in writings
of Spanish botanists, particularly the Augustinian friars.
They discovered a rich tropical fungal flora in this part of
the continent after the discovery of the islands in the
sixteenth century.

The first record of a Philippine fungus was the one

collected by Adelbert von Chamisso, a botanist of
the Romanzoff Expedition to the Philippines, and
published by Ehrenberg in Nees von Esenback’s
Horae Physicae Berolinensis (1820) 79-104.

Described as new, the fungus was named

Sphaeria eschscholzii but renamed and
reported as Daldinia eschsholzii by Rehm in
Leaflets of Philippine Botany 6 (1914) 2206
(Teodoro,1937).
Daldinia
Early Records of Philippine Fungi and Expeditions

Thaddeus Haenke, who began his travels in 1789,

reached the Philippines in March, 1792, and collected
one fungus from Luzon, the biggest island in the
country. This fungus was recorded by Nees von
Esenbeck, in Presl’s Reliquiae Haenkeanae (1825) 1-
2, as Polyporus sanguineus.

Pycnoporus sanguineus (Fr.) Murr.

Francisco Manuel Blanco, in his Flora de
Filipinas, merely mentioned that there are
numerous species to be found in the
Philippine islands, and listed one fungus,
Sclerotium subterraneum, in which Graff,
Mycologia 8 (1916) 254, construed as
Xylaria nigripes (Klotz.) Sacc.

Xylaria nigripes
 FUNGAL SPECIES
The number of fungal species
described and recorded for the
whole world has been reached
to about 72,000 species.

Lycoperdon
1.5 million for the total
number estimated to occur
on Earth (Hawksworth,1991).

Accepted in the Global Biodiversity Assessment Cyathus

 In the Philippines…

Sac fungi
The sac fungi, club fungi,
zygomycetes, and
deuteromycetes have been
estimated to comprise altogether
Club fungi
more than 4,968 species.

Tadiosa et al., 2016

Deuteromycetes Zygomycetes
The Philippine Fungal Diversity

Macrofungi in the Philippines

From 3,566 (Dogma, 2006) reached to 4,968 with 1,031 genera.

This is in connection with the continuing research of local and foreign
mycologists in the Philippines.
Most representative Genera of Fungi in the Philippines

Agaricus
Agaricus
Coprinus
Daedalea
Fomes
Polyporus Coprinus

Daedalea

Fomes
Polyporus
 Mycological Terminology
annulus – ring of tissue on a mushroom stalk left by a
form partial veil
ascocarp – fruit body of an ascomycetes fungus
ascomycetes - class of fungi that produce their spores
in sac-like cells called asci
ascospores – sexual spores produced in the asci of
ascomycetes fungi
basidiocarp – fruit body of a basidiomycete fungus
basidiomycetes – class of fungi that produce their
spores in basidia
basidiospores – sexual spores produced on the basidia
of basidiomycetes fungi
cap – top part of a basidiomycete mushroom that carries
the fertile tissue
 Mycological Terminology

context – the flesh of a fungal fruit body

gills – plates of tissue bearing the hymenium in an agaricoid
fungus
hymenium – fertile spore-bearing tissue (e.g on mushroom gills
or pore surfaces)
hypha – filamentous thread of fungal mycelium
mycelium – body of a fungus, most of which is underground or
hidden within wood
ring – membranous remains of the partial veil attached to a stem
spore – reproductive structure of a fungus
stipe – stalk of a mushroom
volva – remains of the universal veil found at stem base of some
fungi
 LIFE CYCLE OF FUNGI

The series of changes in the life of an organism,

including reproduction.
Primordia is an organ or tissue in its earliest recognizable stage of development.
In the life cycle of a sexually
reproducing fungus:

A haploid phase alternates with

a diploid phase. The haploid
phase ends with nuclear fusion,
and the diploid phase begins
with the formation of the zygote
(the diploid cell resulting from
fusion of two haploid sex cells).

Karyogamy, the fusion of the nuclei of cells as in fertilization.

Plasmogamy, the fusion of two or more cells without fusion of the nuclei.

Haploid- a cellular condition where each chromosome type is represented by only one chromosome;
Diploid – a cellular condition where each chromosome type is represented by two homologous
chromosome, chromosome of the same size and shape which carry the same type of genes.
Meiosis (reduction division) restores
the haploid number of chromosomes
and initiates the haploid phase, which
produces the gametes. In the majority
of fungi, all structures are haploid
except the zygote. Nuclear fusion takes
place at the time of zygote formation,
and meiosis follows immediately.

Haploid- a cellular condition where each chromosome type is represented by only one chromosome.

Diploid – a cellular condition where each chromosome type is represented by two homologous
chromosome, chromosome of the same size and shape which carry the same type of genes.
Monokaryotic. A spore from a mushroom which germinates starts with the formation of primary
mycelium.

Dikaryotic characterized by the presence of two nuclei in each cell.

Strain is a genetic variant or subtype of a micro-organism

Criteria for the five-kingdom classification

Bases of
Monerans Protists Fungi Plants Animals
Comparison

Type of cells Prokaryote Eukaryotic Eukaryotic Eukaryotic Eukaryotic

Complexity Unicellular Mostly Mostly Multicellular Multicellular

unicellular multicellular

Heterotrophic
Mode of Nutrition Autotrophic Photosynthetic by Photosynthetic Heterotrophic
Heterotrophic Heterotrophic absorption by ingestion

Some by Some by
Motility flagella flagella, Non motile Non motile Motile by
Some by cilia muscle fibers

Life cycle Asexual Various Haplontic Alternation of Diplontic

generation
Haplontic – having a life cycle in which the main form is haploid, with a diploid zygote being formed only briefly
 GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FUNGI
• Fungi are eukaryotic organisms.
• They are non-vascular organisms.
• They reproduce by means of spores.
• Depending on the species and conditions both
sexual and asexual spores may be produced.
• They are typically non-motile.
• The vegetative body of the fungi may be unicellular
or composed of microscopic threads called
hyphae.
• The structure of cell wall is similar to plants but
chemically the fungi cell wall are composed of
chitin.
• Fungi are heterotrophic organisms.
 GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FUNGI
• The fungi digest the food first and then ingest the food,
to accomplish this the fungi produce exoenzymes.
• Fungi store their food as starch.
• Biosynthesis of chitin occurs in fungi.
• The nuclei of the fungi is very small.
• Nutrition in fungi - they are saprophytes, or parasites or
symbionts.
• Reproduction in fungi is both by sexual and asexual
means. Sexual state is referred to as teleomorph
(typically a fruiting body), asexual state is referred to
as anamorph (often mold-like).
 MAJOR
FUNGAL CHARACTERISTICS
1) Cell wall made of chitin
2) Heterotrophs and major
decomposers
3)Body is made of long filaments
of hyphae which form a
mycelium
4)Reproduce sexually and
asexually
• Asexually by spores
• Sexually by mating of
hyphae filaments.
 DISTRIBUTION
Fungi grow almost everywhere,
on land and in water.

Some fungi are parasites and

some are saprophytes, others
are living together with other
organisms, e.g. algae in ways
that are mutually beneficial.
 WHERE ARE THEY FOUND?
These fungi are found in
diverse habitats from
marine and freshwaters, to
various types of terrestrial
habitats including the
mangrove forests to the
lowland primary forests, to
the montane and sub-
alpine vegetation in the
highest mountains of the
country.
 FUNGI/ MUSHROOM HABITAT
• Fungi occur throughout the world,
but most of the species can be
found in tropical areas and in the
northern temperate zones.

Some are widespread, occurring

in North America, Europe, and
Asia; others are restricted to a
single continent.
 FUNGI/ MUSHROOM HABITAT

(a)Woodland
(b)Softwood trees
(c)Grassland
(d)Hardwood trees
 MUSHROOM HABITAT
(a)Woodland
• Many varieties of woodland support
different types of fungal life. Alkaline
loam dominated by ash trees tends
to contain non-mycorrhizal species,
such as Lepiota.

Acid, peaty soil, with hardwood trees, has a

high proportion of mycorrhizal fungi, such as
boletes, knight –caps, and russules.

Mineral-laden soil, along paths or beside

ditches, can support species of Lepiota,
Psathyrella, and Peziza, which thrive on
comparatively small amounts of organic
matter.
 MUSHROOM HABITAT

(b)Softwood trees
• Most softwood trees, or conifers, form
important mycorrhizal relationships with
fungi.
• Many fungus species are only found
under one particular type of conifer, so
knowing the tree’s name makes an
accurate identification of the fungus more
likely. The trees shown are among the
most important.
 MUSHROOM HABITAT
(c) Grassland
• There are many types of grassland, from the
basic monocultures of grasses to heavily
fertilized pastures or near-natural,
unfertilized but grazed or mown grassland.

The mushrooms in such habitats may be directly

associated with the grass or other plants in the turf, or they
may be dung-fungi, living on the droppings of the animals
that graze there.

Soil composition is also important, with different fungi

species occurring in very acid grassland compared to
more neutral or very alkaline soils.
 MUSHROOM HABITAT
(d) Hardwood trees
• Mycorrhizal relationships often exist
between fungi and the hardwood, or
deciduous trees.
• There are several other important
hardwoods, including yakal,
molave, and narra, which have less
direct relationships with fungi.
Fungal Ecology
Fungal ecology is the relationship between fungi, the environment, and other
organisms.
Fungi play vital roles in all ecosystems, as decomposers, symbionts of animals
and plants and as parasites. Thus their ecology is of great interest.

It has been estimated that there may be as many as 1. 5 million species of fungi,
many of which are still undescribed. These interact in various ways with their
hosts, with their substrates, with their competitors (including other fungi) and with
abiotic variables of their environment.

They show great variation in morphology, reproduction, life cycles and modes
of dispersal. They grow in almost every conceivable habitat where organic
carbon is available: on rock surfaces, in soil, the sea and in fresh water, at
extremes of high and low temperature, on dry substrata and in concentrated
solutions.
 MUSHROOM LIFESTYLES
• Once a fungus has established itself by forming a
mycelium, it has to find a way to continue to grow
and live.
• Different types of fungi have different methods of
survival. Many have to form a mutually beneficial, or
mycorrhizal, relationship with a living partner, such
as a tree, which enables both to survive; others,
known as saprotrophs, degrade (break down) dead
material.

There are also some fungi that kill plants or animals. These are called
nectrotrophs. Through their ability to break down dead matter or provide
suitable growing conditions for other living things, fungi play a vital role in
the ecological balance of the environment.
 MUSHROOM LIFESTYLES
(a)Mycorrhizal
(b)Saprotrophic
(c)Nectrotrophic
(d)Biotrophic
 MUSHROOM LIFESTYLES
Mycorrhizal
• Mycorrhizal are the basis for a close
beneficial relationship between the tree
and the fungus, in which the tree gives the
fungus sugars, while the fungus provides
water and nutrients.

A mycorrhizal relationship is formed when the hyphae of fungi

species, including some Agarics and most Boletes, penetrate
roots of a suitable, living, host tree.
 MUSHROOM LIFESTYLES
Saprotrophic
• With the aid of enzymes, which they release
externally, saprotrophic fungi degrade many types
of dead organic matter, including fungi and
animals.
• Some saprotrophs, such as Strobilurus esculentus,
only occur on one substrate.

Others are wider in their range. Some fungal species are

even present in a passive form in living plants, waiting to
start their activity once the plant dies.
 MUSHROOM LIFESTYLES
Nectrotrophic

• Nectrotrophs live off and eventually kill living plants.

Some kill their host by blocking or destroying the
plant’s water and nutrient transport system with
hyphae or specially-produced, yeast-like cells;
others use toxins.

After killing the plant, the nectrotroph acts like a

saprotrophs, degrading the plant as a substrate.
Nectrotrophs include Fomes fomentarius and Armillaria
species.
 MUSHROOM LIFESTYLES
Biotrophic

• Like mycorrhizal fungi, biotrophic fungi,

such as rusts and mildews, depend on a
living host.
• However, in this case, the plant does not
benefit. Special hyphae are often produced
by the fungus, which penetrate the host
cells and transport the nutrients back to the
fungus.
• Although the plant is not killed, its like
processes may be affected. For example,
spores may contaminate seed and
germinate in seedlings.
 ECOLOGICAL - ECONOMIC
IMPORTANCE
• Fungi breakdown complex animal and
plant matter into simple compounds.

• This process of decomposition enriches

the soil and makes essential substances
available to plants in a form they can
use.

• Through decomposition, fungi also

return carbon dioxide to the
atmosphere, where green plants reuse it
to make food.

• A great majority of plant diseases are

due to fungi.
• Occurrence of such diseases
maybe observed in the natural
forests, thickets, open fields,
decaying woods, and on
trunks of living trees.

• Other than diseases and

decay, fungi have been
harnessed by man in food
processing, production of
medicine, and industry.
1. Phylum Zygomycota = the Zygote forming Fungi
black bread mold (Rhizopus)

2. Phylum Ascomycota = the Cup Fungi

yeast, morels, truffles

3. Phylum Basidiomycota = the Club Fungi

mushrooms, puffballs, bracket fungi, rusts,
smuts, toadstools

4. Phylum Deuteromycota = the Fungi Imperfecti

Penicillium, Aspergillus
 FUNGAL MORPHOLOGY
• dealing with the study of the form
and structure of organisms and their
specific structural features.
 WHAT IS MORPHOLOGY?
• This includes aspects of the outward
appearance (shape, structure, color,
pattern) as well as the form and
structure of other internal parts.

• This is in contrast to physiology, which

deals primarily with function.
• Cap and stem
• Saddle-like cap FRUIT BODY SHAPES
• Honey-comb-like cap
• Bracket-like
• Club-shaped
• Phallus-like
• Antler-like
• Coral-like
• Pear-to –pestle-shaped
• Cup-or disc-shaped
• Cage-like
• Ear-like
• Gelatinous
 CAP FEATURES

• Cap shapes and

surfaces
• Margin of caps
• Surface of caps
 GILLS
• Gill margin
• Gills in section
• Gills from beneath
• Gills attachment
PRESENCE OF RINGS
Basic anatomy of stalk and cap
model with annulus
Gills can be attached or free where the cap
meets the stalk, depending on the species.
Mushroom cap turned upside-down
to illustrate radial gill pattern

Detail of gill (microscopic

features)
 Cross section detail of a bolete cap. The pores on
the underside are formed by narrow tubes
growing lengthwise.

Basic anatomy of a bolete

mushroom. Pores constitute the
underside of the cap instead of
gills.
 Cross sectional view of a puffball.

Basic anatomy of a puffball (not all

puffballs have these features)
 ANATOMY OF THE FRUITING BODY
• The study of structure through
techniques such as microscopic observation
and dissection.
 ANATOMY OF FUNGI
The fungi consists of two parts:
(a)the reproductive structure, and
(b) the underground mycelium.

The mycelium is usually underground, and made up

of units called hyphae.

The hyphae are tubular structures that contain

cytoplasm and have plasma membranes.

The cytoplasm contains the basic organelles (ie:

mitochondria, lysosome, etc.).

The hyphae can be septate hypha, which have cell

walls and separations, but still allow the nuclei and
cytoplasm to travel through pores.
• The second kind you can have would be the
coenocytic hyphae, which are open, without
separations.
• When the fungi is a mutualistic organism, or
lives with a plant, hyphae can grow into the
plant's cells, and they are called
haustorium.
• In the overall structure, the hyphae are like
strings, that when tangled, make up the
overall structure of mycelium.
• The mycelium functions as the feeding and
nutrition structure, and the mycelium, since
they are underground, can stretch out for
miles.
 SPORE
• Spore color
• Spore shapes
• Spore size
• Spore surface
SPORES
Sporangium

Sporangiospores

Sporangiophores

Coenocytic Hyphae

Rhizoids

Rhizopus
Conidiospores

Phialides

Vesicles

Conidiophores

Septate hyphae

Penicillium
The fungi usually concentrates all its
energy on adding hyphae, which
allows for more surface area.

The surface area is important,

because the fungi obtains nutrients by
absorption.

The second part of the structure is the

reproductive structure, which can come in a few
different ways.

It is a fruiting structure and can grow in forms

resembling human ears, birds' nests, round cages,
veils, beach balls, and cups.
FUNGAL IDENTIFICATION
Taking measurements for fungi…
METHODS OF IDENTIFICATION
When we look at the fungi or mushroom,
they may all look similar but as we
observed them more closely, differences
and similarities are perceived.

The correct identification of fungi becomes

a matter of observing carefully the physical
appearance and other characteristics
possessed by them.

Compare all of them with descriptions and

illustration or with other specimens, and
assessed the value of differences and
similarities.
There is no single book that contains description of
all the known species of fungi and no one person
can, with certainly, identify every mushroom you
find.

Apparently, the most usual way for a beginner to start

learning to identify mushroom is by association with some
more experiences collector who can point out the
common species and the characters by which they are
recognized.

In this case, the necessity for consulting books on mushroom

will become apparent and these books usually contain keys,
descriptions and illustrations to aid in identification.
 SIMPLE KEY TO THE FUNGI/MUSHROOM FAMILIES
BASED ON READILY OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS

I. Fungi cap-like to shelf-like, with gills, pores or teeth, usually on the lower surface
1. Cap with gills -------------------------------- Gill fungi (Agaricaceae)
2. Cap with pores or tubes --------------------- Pore fungi (Polyporaceae)
II. Fungi without gills, pores or teeth; shelf-,coral-,club-, saddle-,cup-or ball-like
1. Fungi cup-shaped or saucer-shaped
a. Cup leathery, with seed-like bodies inside ------ bird’s nest fungi
(Nidulariaceae)
b. Cup fleshy, hollow -------------------- cup fungi (Pezizaceae)
2. Fungi coral-,fan-,club-,saddle-,shelf-or ball-like
a. Cap without minute pits or cavities in cross-section
a1. Cap jelly-or cartilage-like -- jelly fungi (Tremellaceae)
a2. Cap fleshy to leathery, not-jelly-like ---- puffballs
(Lycoperdaceae)
b. Cap with minute pits or cavities in cross-section, usually black and
hard, or bright-colored and fleshy when parasitic ----
black fungi (Pyrenomycetaceae)
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
APHYLLOPHORALES
Basidiocarps annual to
perennial, leathery to
woody, with pores, or tube-
like structure.
Fomes
Earliella
Hexagonia
Ganoderma
Hydnum
Lenzites
Polyporus
Phellinus
Microporus
Pycnoporus
Schizophyllum
Thelephora
Trametes
 APHYLLOPHORALES
Fomes
Basidiocarp perennial,bracket-like, lacking stipe and effuse, reflexed or angulate; pore so minute,
each year one layer formed over preceding year.
Ganoderma
Basidiocarp woody, fan-shaped, many species lacqured, brown, hymenium lighter in color, smooth and shiny
Hexagonia
Basidiocarp leathery with hexagonal pores.
Hydnum
Basidiocarp fleshy, cap like mushrooms but under surface with “teethlike” projections pointing
downward, instead of gills
Lenzites
Almost similar as Daedalea except that under surface gilled, part poroid, often branch
or anastomosed.
Microporus
Basidiocarp funnel-shaped, papery thin, shiny top, with light to brown concentric lines.
 APHYLLOPHORALES
Phellinus
Basidiocarp is almost gray to black in color, hoof-shaped and extremely woody, with thick margins.
Polyporus
Basidiocarp annual, sessile or effuse-reflexed, leathery or woody, tubes in distinct layer; pore circular
to slightly angular.
Pycnoporus
basidiocarp has uniform bright cinnabar-red coloring; semi-circular to fan-shaped, with fine, silky
hairs on the upper surface.
Schizophyllum
Fruiting body has grayish, flat, fan-shaped with prominent gills on its under surface.
Thelephora
Basidiocarp infundibuliform or cup-shaped more or less branched, hymenium smooth, pores hardly
visible.
Trametes
Basidiocarp annual with pores or tubes almost similar to Polyporus except tubes, when cut
lengthwise.
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
AGARICALES
Fruiting body fleshy whose
caps are composed of gills
under its surface, with or
without ring.

Agaricus
Coprinus
Lactarius
Marasmius
Russula
 AGARICALES
Agaricus
*cap cuticle fibrellose to squamollose, ring present, gills pink when immature.
Coprinus
*pileus conical when closed, mostly with scales on surface.
Lactarius
*latex exuded if cut when fresh, sometimes changing color upon exposure to air.
Marasmius
*usually showing striate marks of gills underneath, with prominent gills widely apart
underneath.
Russula
* fruiting body generally brittle, the cap, often brilliant colored.
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
TREMELLALES
Fruiting body characterized by the
gelatinous, jelly-like basidiocarps.

Auricularia
Dacrymyces
Dacryopinax
 TREMELLALES

Auricularia Dacrymyces Dacryopinax

Fruiting body ear-shaped, Fruiting body gelatinous, Fruiting body spatulate
pinkish to brown in color, flattened,sessile on wood, with unilateral inferior
gelatinous and attached usually yellow or orange, hymenium, basidia
to the wood substrate by basidia elongate and cylindrical at first then
a lateral point, hymenium forked at apex. clavate becoming
marked with veins, bifurcate.
smooth, the other surface
hairy.
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
PEZIZALES
Fruiting body (ascocarps-eight spores)
characterized by the gelatinous, jelly-like
ascocarps.

Cookeina
Ascobolus
Phillipsia
 PEZIZALES

Ascobolus Cookeina Philippsia

Found on wood, leaves or Fruitbody is goblet-shaped, Fruiting body small to large,
soil, but mostly associated with stalk, brightly colored, sessile, with thick-fleshed,
with dung. smooth or hairy, asci 8 firm, hymenium light to bright
spored. colored (yellow, orange, red,
The fruitbody or ascocarp is a
maroon).
cup-shaped apothecium,
yellowish-green when young
changing to dark reddish
brown when matured.
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
XYLARIALES
Fruiting body stroma is stipitate of
various shapes and size, mostly
clavate, or filiform or sausage-
shaped, leathery and corky usually
white, black or brown.

Xylaria
Daldinia
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
ZYGOMYCETES
If no zoospores are formed and no
septa on the hyphal or mycelial
strands.

Mucor
Rhizopus
Basidiobolus
Cunninghamella
 OBSERVABLE CHARACTERS
DEUTEROMYCETES
If no macroscopic fruiting structures
are formed but spores (conidia) can
be observed under the microscope.

Aspergillus
Fusarium
Penicillium
MAJOR GROUPING OF FUNGI
 MAJOR FUNGAL GROUPS/TYPES
The four (4) major fungal groups in
Kingdom Fungi:

(1) Phylum Zygomycota,

(2) Phylum Ascomycota,
(3) Phylum Basidiomycota, and the
(4) Phylum Deuteromycota
The three groups of fungi, classified according to their sexual life cycles, are the zygomycetes, ascomycetes,
and basidiomycetes. A fourth group, the deuteromycetes, appears to lack modes of sexual reproduction.
1. Phylum Zygomycota = the Zygote forming Fungi
black bread mold (Rhizopus)

2. Phylum Ascomycota = the Cup Fungi

yeast, morels, truffles

3. Phylum Basidiomycota = the Club Fungi

mushrooms, puffballs, bracket fungi, rusts,
smuts, toadstools

4. Phylum Deuteromycota = the Fungi Imperfecti

Penicillium, Aspergillus
Major Groups of Basidiomycetous Fungi
Chantrelles
Mushrooms and Toadstools
Boletes

Club fungi

Bracket fungi

Stinkhorns

Jelly fungi
Cup fungi and flask fungi
Puffballs and relatives
 FUNGAL TAXONOMY AND
CLASSIFICATION
• Taxonomy deals with identification
and naming (nomenclature) of
organisms
• Began with ancient Greeks and
Romans

• Carl von Linne (1707-1778)

• Known as the Father of Taxonomy
• Born in May 1707 in Southern Sweden
• Published several books and papers including
Systema Naturae, Fundamenta Botanica, and
Genera Plantarum
 CAROLUS LINNAEUS
• Introduced the use of binomial
system of nomenclature for all
species
• Converted his name to a two-part
Latin version, Carolus Linnaeus
• Published 2-volume set of Species
Plantarum in 1753 which included
7,300 kinds of plants
• Credited with naming
approximately 12,000 plants,
animals and fungi
 TAXONOMIC CATEGORIES
• The group of organisms in particular category is called a taxon

THE SEVEN OBLIGATORY

HIERARCHICAL CATEGORIES
Kingdom-may be composed of several phyla Example: Classification of fungus
(division)
Phylum (Division in plants) – may be Kingdom: Fungi
composed of several classes
Phylum: Basidiomycota
Class – may be composed of several Class: Agaricomycetes
orders
Order: Polyporales
Order – may be composed of several Family: Polyporaceae
families
Genus: Microporus
Family – may be compose of several Species: Microporus xanthopus
genera (Fr.) Kuntze
Genus – may be composed of
several species
Species – may be composed of
several varieties
• A binomial nomenclature given to a
SCIENTIFIC NAME
particular species
• Composed of the generic name (genus)
and species epithet (species)
• The complete binomial name indicates the
species or specific name
• Should be treated in Latin or should be
Latinized
• Should be underlined separately or italicized
• Latin is used to avoid jealousy among the
scientific community
• Should follow the rules and
recommendations set by the International
Code of Botanical/ Zoological
Nomenclature (ICBN & ICZN)
• The universal standard name for any
organism Cymatoderma elegans Jungh.
 WHAT IS TAXONOMY?
• Taxonomy is the science of naming, describing and classifying organisms, and it
includes all plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms of the world.

• Using morphological, behavioural, genetic and biochemical observations,

taxonomists identify, describe and arrange species into classifications,
including those that are new to science.

• Taxonomy identifies and enumerates the components of biological diversity

providing basic knowledge underpinning management and implementation
of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

• Unfortunately, taxonomic knowledge is far from complete. In the past 250

years of research, taxonomists have named about 1.78 million species of
animals, plants and micro-organisms, yet the total number of species is
unknown and probably between 5 and 30 million.
Secretariat of Convention on Biological Diversity. 2007. Guide to
the Global Taxonomy Initatiative, CBD Technical Series # 27
 WHAT’S IN A NAME?
• Different kinds of animals, fungi and plants and microorganisms are
called different ‘species’.
• This reflects a real biological difference – a species is defined as a
potentially interbreeding group of organisms that can produce viable
offspring that themselves can interbreed.
• Thus animals of two different species, like a horse and a zebra, cannot
interbreed, while animals of the same species can.

Secretariat of Convention on Biological Diversity. 2007. Guide to

the Global Taxonomy Initatiative, CBD Technical Series # 27
 WHAT’S IN A NAME?
• Taxonomists provide unique names for species, labels that can help us
find out more about them, and enable us to be sure that we are all
talking about the same thing.
• Of course, there are names for organisms in many languages, but it is
important, for example, when discussing the hedgehog to know whether
one is talking about the small spiny insectivore Erinaceus europaeus,
other members of the same family, cacti of the genus Echinocerus, or the
orange fungus Hydnum repandum, all of which have the same ‘common’
name in English.
• For this reason the Latin ‘scientific’ name, is given as a unique universal
identifier.

Secretariat of Convention on Biological Diversity. 2007. Guide to

the Global Taxonomy Initatiative, CBD Technical Series # 27
 HOW TO NAME A SPECIES: THE TAXONOMIC PROCESS
• Taxonomists begin by sorting specimens to separate sets they believe represent
species.
• Once the specimens are sorted the next job is to see whether or not they
already have names.
• This may involve working through identification guides, reading descriptions
written perhaps 200 years ago, and borrowing named specimens from
museums or herbaria to compare with the sample.

Secretariat of Convention on Biological Diversity. 2007. Guide to

the Global Taxonomy Initatiative, CBD Technical Series # 27
 HOW TO NAME A SPECIES: THE TAXONOMIC PROCESS

• Such comparison may involve external characters, need to dissect internal structures,
or even molecular analysis of the DNA.
• If there is no match the specimens may represent a new species, not previously given
a name.

• The taxonomist then has to write a description, including ways in which the new species can be
distinguished from others, and make up a name for it, in a Latin format. The name and the
description must then
• be properly published so that other taxonomists can see what has been done, and be able to
identify the species themselves.
• From finding the specimens to the name appearing in print can take several years.

Secretariat of Convention on Biological Diversity. 2007. Guide to

the Global Taxonomy Initatiative, CBD Technical Series # 27
 NOMENCLATURE
• The orderly application of binomial
names to a particular taxon.
 FUNGAL NOMENCLATURE

• the act or process or an instance of

naming

• a system or set of terms or symbols

especially in a particular science,
discipline, or art

• an international system of standardized

New Latin names used in biology for
kinds and groups of animals, fungi, and
plants.
RULES IN GIVING SCIENTIFIC NAMES
Rules of Name of Genera (genus)

The generic name of a fungi is always a noun, in the

singular, nominative case

1. Distinctive Characteristics of Fungi

Auricularia - – ear-like fruiting body
Peziza – stalkless mushroom
Cystoderma – blistered skin
Phellinus - corky
Pholiota - scaly
Polyporus – many pores
Ganoderma – lustrous skin
Geastrum – earthstar
Schizophyllum – split gills
Tremella – trembling, like a jelly
Tricholoma – hairy/ fibrous
Xylaria - woody
3. Name of Honor of a person
Lenzites (after Harald Othmar Lenz, a German
botanist/mycologist)
Kuehneromyces (after Robert Kuhner, a French mycologist)
Bjerkandera (after Clas Bjerkander, a Swedish botanist)
Bankera (after Howard J. Banker, an American mycologist

ends in vowel - add a Ex. Binaldo – Binaldoa

ends in a - add ea Flormata – Flormataea

ends in consonant add ia Cortes – Cortesia

except end in us - drop us, then add a

Riccius - Riccia
Rules of Specific Epithet (species)
The specific epithet may be an adjective, aggreing
with the generic name in gender.

1.Indicates prominent characteristics of the fungi

aspera – rough
hirsutus – hirsute, hairy
atropurpureus – dark purple
aurantiacus – orange-red
flavus - yellow
sanguineus – bloody, blood red

2. Referred to a locality where the species were first

discovered
Mt. Makiling – makilingensis
Sorsogon – sorsogonensis
Cavite – cavitensis
Laguna – lagunensis
Mt. Halcon – halconensis
3. Derived from the names of person

ends in vowel - add i Ex. Nacino – nacinoi

ends in a - add e Salvatierra – salvatierrae

ends in consonant add ii Santos – santosii

except er - add i Zollenger - zollengeri

 TO PUBLISH NEW SPECIES
1. With description
2. Latin diagnosis – 1 to 2 sentences
3. Scientific illustrations/photograph
4. Type specimens – indicate collection number where
deposited
- In recognized journal, printed materials for distribution
New Danish fungal species discovered

A new fungal species, called Hebeloma griseopruinatum, has now officially been included
in the list of species. The fungus, whose name can be translated into ‘the grey-dewy tear
leaf’, was discovered on Zealand in Denmark during a mushroom-hunting tour headed by
postdoc Jacob Heilman-Clausen from the University of Copenhagen.

During a mushroom-hunting excursion to Eskebjerg Vesterlyng in 2009, postdoc Jacob

Heilman-Clausen from the Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate
at the Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, was handed a very interesting
looking fungus.

Following thorough expert studies, the fungus has now officially been classified as a novel
species.

The fungus has been sighted once before in both England and Germany, but has not been
described until the Danish discovery. The scientific description of the fungus has just been
published in the journal Fungal Diversity.
 TYPES SPECIMENS
• Holotype – specimen designated by the author, nomenclatural
type.

• Isotype – specimen believed to be duplicate of a holotype,

collected in the same place.

• Topotype – specimen collected at the same station or locality.

• Paratype – specimen cited by the author with the original

description other than holotype.

• Lectotype – specimen or element selected by a taxonomists from

the original materials studied by the author to serve as a substitute
by a holotype.
 TO PREPARE A FUNGAL
FLORA
a. Collection of specimens
b. Identification
c. Description
d. Provide a dichotomous
key (optional)
e. Have a very good
illustration or photograph
Flora – there is an inventory of the plant or fungal species in given
area.
* it is also a book
* always authenticated with the herbarium specimens.
* citation of the species where it is deposited
Arma 807 or DLSUDH 8057
* may or may not have dichotomous key.
Manual – just an aid to identification
* makes an identification easy
* must have always dichotomous key
Revision – taxonomic study of a given taxon in a given area (local)
* study more on Genus
* Example: the genus of Pleurotus in Palawan
Monograph – study of a given taxon,more on family level
* comprehensive treatment, anatomy, morphology,
ecology, etc. (not local)
* Example: Family – SE Asia, Monograph of Malesia, or
the World.
Cheklist – listing of species found in the given area.
* the taxonomist always did it first
* more accurate and complete
Floristic –investigation of a flora in a given area.