Clavariaceae.org
Title
The genus Clavulinopsis has been variously defined from including a single species upon its initial publication (Van Overeem 1923) based on the large basidia with a frequent aberrant sterigmatal count and length, a large and hetrogenous group (Corner, 1950, 1970), to being wholly done away with and subsumed into Clavaria and Ramariopsis based on characters like pigment chemistry (Petersen 1978). As currently delimited based on molecular evidence (Birkebak 2013), the concept aligns perfectly with that of Petersen pre 1978 (e.g. 1968), that is excluding basidolichens (Multiclavula and Lepidostroma) as well as smooth-spored Ramariopsis species.
The genus can be divided into 4 subgenera based on spore morphology, pigment chemistry, nuclear behavior, and a little bit of DNA magic. The pigment chemistry and nuclear behavior needs further confirmation as I can only find data for just a few representative species while the macrochemical characteristics need also to be tested on a wider range of species and may not be entirely consistent.
Subgenus | Spore Apiculus Size | Spore Shape | Pigments | Basidial Nuclear Behavior | Ethanol and Iron Salts | KOH Soluble Pigments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Donkella | Large | Globose | Phenolics | With post-meiotic division | Greenish (typically?) | Brownish? |
Acularia | Large | Various | Phenolics | With post-meiotic division | Greenish (typically?) | Yellow? |
Paraclavaria | Small to Moderate | Ellipsoid to Amygdaliform | Carotenes | Unknown | Negative? | None |
Clavulinopsis | Small | Globose | Carotenes | No post-meiotic division | Negative | None |
The good news is you do not always need to study nuclear division and organic chemistry to narrow species down into subgenera or species groups. For example, if you have a large orange thing it is probably in the Clavulinopsis aurantiocinnabarina group, if it is regularly branched it is probably in subgenus Donkella (Cu. corniculata and allies), but if it is a simple (unbranched) small yellow to orange thing, it could be about any of the subgenera. With a microscope, some chemicals, or repeated collection and examination, the organisms can be learned and placed in groups (but good luck telling the species in these groups apart... at least for now).
The following phylogeny based on a relatively unrefined ITS alignment which I hope to update in the future. It does recapitulate (with odd placements for a few problem sequences) the same major clades recovered in LSU and rpb2-based phylogenies (but not neccesarily the relationship between the clades) which I am referring to as Subgenera herein. More refined alignments can be found in the pages for each subgenus.
Subgenus Acularia
Subgenus Paraclavaria
Literature Cited:
Birkebak, J., Mayor, J., Ryberg, K., & Matheny, P. (2013). A systematic, morphological and ecological overview of the Clavariaceae (Agaricales). Mycologia, 105(4), 896–911. https://doi.org/10.3852/12-070
Corner, E. (1950). A Monograph of Clavaria and Allied Genera. Oxford University Press.
Corner, E. (1970). Supplement to “A Monograph of Clavaria and Allied Genera.” Beihefte zur Nova Hedwigia.
Overeem, C. (1923). Beiträge zur Pilzflora von Niederländisch Indien. Bulletin Du Jardin Botanique de Buitenzorg, 5, 247–296.
Petersen, R. (1968). The Genus Clavulinopsis in North America. Hafner Publishing Company.
Petersen, R. (1978). Notes on Clavarioid Fungi. XV. Reorganization of Clavaria, Clavulinopsis and Ramariopsis. Mycologia, 70(3), 660–671. https://doi.org/10.2307/3759402