Gyroporus smithii Davoodian, 2020

Davoodian, Naveed, Hosaka, Kentaro, Raspé, Olivier, Asher, Olivia A., Franck, Alan R., Kesel, André De, Delaney, Terrence P., Ammirati, Joseph F., Nagasawa, Eiji, Buyck, Bart & Halling, Roy E., 2020, Diversity of Gyroporus (Gyroporaceae, Boletales): rpb 2 phylogeny and three new species, Phytotaxa 434 (3), pp. 208-218 : 216

Gyroporus smithii Davoodian , sp. nov.

Type:— UNITED STATES. Florida: Marion Co., Ocala National Forest, Juniper Springs, 10 Aug 1985, R.E. Halling 4511 (holotype NY! [NY48431]).

Etymology: The specific epithet honors American mycologist Alexander H. Smith (1904–1986). Discovery of this species was made possible by support from the Alexander H. and Helen V. Smith Research Fund, which facilitated study of specimens at MICH.

MycoBank: MB831760

Pileus up to 5 cm, convex to planoconvex, subglabrous to finely furfuraceous to subfelty, yellow-orange to orange to cinnamon-orange 6C-D7,6 ( Kornerup & Wanscher 1978). Flesh white, unchanging. Tubes adnexed, white to cream to yellow. Stipe up to 5 cm long, 0.6–1.6 cm broad, twisted to curved, sometimes bumpy, subconcolorous with pileus, fading towards apex, often whitish at base.

Spores 6–10 × 4–5 μm (Q m =1.5), smooth, hyaline, ellipsoid to subreniform to ovoid. Basidia 30 × 12 µm, hyaline, clavate. Cheilocystidia and pleurocystidia overlapping in morphology, 24–36 × 4–8 µm, aculeate to fusoidventricose. Pileipellis a trichodermium, hyphae 6–20µm broad, end cells 10–14µm broad. Clamp connections present in pileipellis.

Ecology and distribution: Recorded with native vegetation in Florida ( Quercus , Pinus ) and Michigan ( Quercus , Fagus , Carya ), USA.

Additional material examined: UNITED STATES. Florida: Alachua Co., Gainesville, 23 Sep 2015, N. Davoodian 57 (NY2072725). Michigan: Washtenaw Co., Ann Arbor, Bird Hills Nature Area, 1 Jul 2014, R.A. Powers 2014070101 (MICH232867).

Commentary: G. smithii corresponds to an orange species of Gyroporus that has often been encountered in the United States west and south of the Appalachian Mountains (east of the Great Plains) and is likely often mistaken for G. borealis (since G. borealis can display some orange coloration, though it is generally more darkly colored). G. smithii also has smaller and less elongated spores than G. borealis . Both G. smithii and G. borealis are segregate species of G. castaneus sensu lato (clade that includes G. borealis sp. nov. + G. castaneus s.s. and related lineages); G. smithii is phylogenetically closer to G. castaneus sensu stricto (represented by clade containing VDKO979 + NY1393580). Images of MICH 232867 are available online at the Mycology Collections Portal (mycoportal.org/portal/collections/ individual/index.php?occid=2307198).