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Clavulinopsis corniculata

[ Basidiomycetes > Agaricales > Clavariaceae > Clavulinopsis . . . ]

by Michael Kuo

Clavulinopsis corniculata, with its yellow colors and delicate branching, is fairly distinctive among corals and clubs. Most collections have a mealy odor and taste, and a drop of iron salts on one of the branches produces an olive green color change. Under the microscope, Clavulinopsis corniculata features clamp connections and smooth, nearly round spores with a prominent apiculus.

As an English teacher I am tempted to digress on the rolling dactyls and anapests in "Clavulinopsis corniculata," with scansion identical to Whitman's "Out of the cradle, endlessly rocking," but I'm pretty sure no one cares.

Clavaria corniculata is a synonym.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic; growing alone, scattered, or gregariously under hardwoods or conifers in woods, or in grassy areas; often in disturbed ground; summer and fall, or over winter in warmer climates; widely distributed in North America.

Fruiting Body: 2-9 cm high; sparingly to moderately branched; delicate.

Branches: Smooth; yellow; tips colored like the sides.

Base: 1-4 cm long; 1-5 mm thick; often tapering to base; yellow above, covered with white mycelium below; sometimes absent or rudimentary.

Flesh: Pale yellow.

Odor and Taste: Odor mealy; taste mealy or bitter.

Chemical Reactions: Iron salts olive on branches. KOH orange on branches.

Spore Print: White.

Microscopic Features: Spores 4.5-7 µ; globose or subglobose; smooth; with a prominent apiculus 1-1.5 µ long. Basidia 4-spored; up to 80 µ long. Clamp connections present, but often not particularly conspicuous.


REFERENCES: (Schaeffer, 1774) Corner, 1950. (Fries, 1821; Saccardo, 1888 [as muscoides]; Coker, 1923 [as muscoides]; Corner, 1950; Petersen, 1968; Smith, Smith & Weber, 1981; Arora, 1986; Phillips, 1991/2005; Barron, 1999; Roody, 2003.) Herb. Kuo 08010401.


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Clavulinopsis corniculata

Clavulinopsis corniculata

Clavulinopsis corniculata
Spores

Clavulinopsis corniculata
Basidium

Clavulinopsis corniculata
Clamp connection



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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2007, April). Clavulinopsis corniculata. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/clavulinopsis_corniculata.html