Lactifluus is one of three genera of mushroom-forming fungi containing species Common name "milk-caps", the others being Lactarius and Multifurca. It has been separated from Lactarius based on molecular phylogenetic evidence but is very similar to that genus. There are roughly 150 known Lactifluus species, which have a mainly Tropics distribution but are also found in the north temperate zone and Australasia.
Taxonomy
The genus
Lactifluus was described in 1806 by French naturalist Henri François Anne de Roussel, with the type species
Lactifluus piperatus.
Later,
Lactifluus was largely considered a synonym of
Lactarius, until molecular phylogenetic work showed in 2008 that
Lactarius was not a
monophyletic group.
In the following, the name
Lactarius was conserved for the biggest of the sub
revealed, containing most well-known north temperate species.
Thus, the name
Lactifluus could be used for the smaller genus, necessitating only a few name changes, as combinations with
Lactifluus had already been made previously for many temperate species.
New combinations have since been proposed for several species formerly classified in
Lactarius.
A phylogenetics-based revision in 2017 divided the genus in four
subgenus:
Lactifluus,
Lactariopsis,
Gymnocarpi and
Pseudogymnocarpi. They are further subdivided into section, but not all species are assigned to named sections. Many of these new groups do not correspond to previous subdivisions based mainly on morphology.
Selected species
, there are roughly 150 described species, classified in four subgenera. Some notable species are listed below under their respective subgenera.
- * Lactifluus corrugis – 'corrugated-cap milky' (North America)
- * Lactifluus piperatus – 'peppery milk-cap' (Europe and North America)
- * Lactifluus volemus – 'weeping milk-cap' or 'voluminous-latex milky' (North and Central America, Europe, Asia)
- * Lactifluus aureifolius (tropical Africa)
- * Lactifluus deceptivus – 'deceiving milk-cap' (North and Central America)
- * Lactifluus densifolius (tropical Africa)
- * Lactifluus edulis (tropical Africa)
- * Lactifluus heimii (tropical Africa)
- * Lactifluus vellereus – 'fleecy milk-cap' (Europe)
- * Lactifluus clarkeae (Australia and New Zealand)
-
Subgenus Pseudogymnocarpi
- * Lactifluus hygrophoroides (North America)
Description
Lactifluus closely resembles its lookalike genus
Lactarius, with whom it shares the brittle flesh of the
fruit bodies and the milk-like latex exuded when bruised. So far,
synapomorphy characters for the genus have not been discovered, there are only tendencies that distinguish it from
Lactarius.
(laterally stiped) fruitbodies are only known in
Lactifluus, while species with closed (angiocarpous) fruitbodies only occur in
Lactarius.
Microscopically, thick-walled elements in the
pileipellis and stipitipellis (
cuticle of the stipe) and sphaerocytes in the trama of the lamellae are common in
Lactifluus, but rare in
Lactarius species.
Edibility
Several species in the genus are
edible mushroom.
Lactifluus volemus especially is a choice mushroom in the northern temperate region.
External links
