Lactarius volemus sensu lato (Russulales) from northern Thailand: morphological and phylogenetic species concepts explored

Abstract

Lactarius volemus (Fr.: Fr.) Fr. is a well known and morphologically easily recognizable milkcap of the Northern hemisphere, forming ectomycorrhiza with both deciduous and coniferous trees. It was originally described from Europe, but is also reported in other continents. Although it is characterized by several unique macro- and micromorphological features, substantial variation in colour, lamellae spacing and changing and staining of the latex has been recorded and it is therefore considered as a putatively unresolved species complex. This study explores the concordance between morphological and phylogenetic species concepts within L. volemus sensu lato of northern Thailand, combining a critical morphological scrutiny with a multiple gene genealogy based on LSU, ITS and rpb2 nuclear sequences. Twelve strongly supported monophyletic clades and six terminal branches are discernable in all phylogenetic trees and represent 18 phylogenetic species. Six of the monophyletic clades can be morphologically distinguished and are described as new species: L. acicularis, L. crocatus, L. distantifolius, L. longipilus, L. pinguis and L. vitellinus. Five other clades also show some morphological differences, but these are too subtle and do not allow for a clear-cut species delimitation without the corroboration of molecular data. Lactarius volemus sensu lato of northern Thailand is therefore still considered as a partially cryptic species complex. Pleurolamprocystidia, pileipellis hairs and to a lesser degree also pileus colour are important diagnostic characteristics. Spore morphology, latex discoloration and pileus surface texture are less useful as diagnostic features. Whether this rich diversity is the result of in situ Pleistocene survival or post-glacial expansion and subsequent radiation, has yet to be revealed

Affinities in C3Cyperus lineages (Cyperaceae) revealed using molecular phylogenetic data and carbon isotope analysis

“…Following Van de Putte et al . (2010), two Bayesian phylogenetic (BI) analyses were carried out in MrBayes v3.1.2 (Ronquist & Huelsenbeck, 2003).…”

Prized edible Asian mushrooms: ecology, conservation and sustainability

“…The abundance of wild mushrooms is also a bioindicator of ecosystem health (Dai et al 2009;Du et al 2011a, b;Sysouphanthong et al 2010;Egli 2011). In Thailand and Laos, wild mushrooms are taxonomically poorly known and recent studies focusing on specific genera have resulted in a large number of new species (Zhao et al 2008(Zhao et al , 2010bLe et al 2007a, b;Sanmee et al 2008;Kerekes and Desjardin 2009;Wannathes et al 2009a, b;Van de Putte et al 2010;Karunarathna et al 2011a, b), indicating how little we actually know about the organisms and the role they play. Even in Yunnan Province of China, relatively little is known, as apparent in recent (Ge et al 2010;Zhang et al 2010;Li et al 2011;Yang 2011).…”

Lactifluus indovolemus sp. nov. and two new records in the Lactifluus volemus complex (Basidiomycota, Russulaceae) from India

“…Apart from Europe, the species was also reported from Guatemala, Mexico, North America and Asia (Hesler and Smith 1979, Saini and Atri 1984, Montoya et al 1996, Das and Sharma 2005, Le 2007, Shimono et al 2007, Wang 2007, Khan and Sher 2016. However, a rather different picture was uncovered when morpho-taxonomical examination was supplemented with concordance of multiple gene genealogies (Van de Putte et al 2010, 2013, Verbeken et al 2012). These recent studies revealed that the name Lactifluus volemus had been misapplied many times to other species showing similar phenotypical expression.…”