Panus similis (Berk. & Broome) T. W. May & A. E. Wood, Mycotaxon

Yue, Lei, Chen, Junliang, Tuo, Yonglan, Qi, Zhengxiang, Liu, Yajie, He, Xiao Lan, Zhang, Bo, Hu, Jiajun & Li, Yu, 2024, Taxonomy and phylogeny of Panus (Polyporales, Panaceae) in China and its relationship with allies, MycoKeys 105, pp. 267-294 : 267-294

Panus similis (Berk. & Broome) T. W. May & A. E. Wood, Mycotaxon 54: 148 (1995)

Figs 6 , 7

Description.

Basidiomata solitary, medium to large. Pileus 3–5.5 cm in diameter, thin, coriaceous, infundibuliform to cyathiform, cinnamon-brown or pale brown (N 50 Y 40-60 M 20 - 40), glabrous, radially plicate-sulcate with striae extending almost to the centre, without concentric zones; margin curved, ciliate not apparent. Lamellae decurrent, crowded, neither furcate nor anatomosing, buff or pale brown (N 10 A 50-60 M 10 - 20), with five tiers of lamellulae, edge entire. Stipe 7.5–9 × 0.35–0.9 cm, clavate, central, solid, coriaceous, surface chestnut brown, with velutinus, slightly expanded at base. Pseudosclerotium slightly small, irregular. Context thin, up to 1 mm thick, white (N 00 Y 10 M 00), coriaceous, consisting of a dimitic hyphal system with skeletal hyphae.

Generative hyphae 3–5.5 μm wide, cylindrical, not inflated, hyaline, thin-walled, frequently branched, with prominent clamp connections. Skeletal hyphae 2–3 μm diameter, sinuous cylindrical, with hyaline or pale brown thick-walled and continuous lumen, unbranched. Basidiospores 5.5–7 × 3–3.5 μm (n = 40, lm = 6.24 μm, wm = 3.03 μm, Q = 1.57–2.33, q = 2.06), cylindrical, smooth, hyaline, thin-walled. Basidia (18) 20–25 × (4) 5–6 μm, clavate, cylindrical, bearing four sterigmata. Lamella-edge sterile, with smaller cheilocystidia. Cheilocystidia crowded, (13) 14–21 × 5.5–7 μm, nodulose-clavate, irregular, hyaline, thin-walled. Sclerocystidia abundant, 21 (22) – 32 (35) × 5–6 (6.5) μm, clavate to irregularly fusoid, with a thick, hyaline or brownish wall. Hymenophoral trama irregular, of radiate construction, hyaline, similar to context. Pileipellis epicutis, made up of thick-walled generative hyphae, 5–6.5 μm wide, occasionally bunched, not inflated, light brown. Stipitipellis similar to pileipellis.

Ecology.

Solitary on rotten wood in broad-leaved forest.

Distribution.

Angola, Australia, Brunei, China, Congo, India, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malay Peninsula, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Sabah, Sarawak, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Vietnam, Zanzibar.

Specimen examined.

China. Zhejiang Province: Lishui City , Qingyuan County, Baishanzu National Park, 27.62 ° N, 118.92 ° E, 28 July 2023, Yingkun Yang & Lei Yue, FJAU 67793 .

Notes.

This species was originally described by Berkeley and Broome (1873) as Lentinus similis Berk. & Broome , then it was treated as Panus fulvus var. similis (Berk. & Broome) Corner ( Corner 1981). However, Pegler (1983) disagreed with Corner and still accepted it as a member of Lentinus . Until 1995, it was first raised to a species rank as P. similis ( May and Wood 1995) .

Based on morphological research, there are some differences between our collected specimen and the original description.

Our specimen has distinct plicate-sulcate similar to the original description; however, its pseudosclerotium is smaller, whereas the original is very large. In addition, its hyphae structure is the same as that of the original description, but its spores are larger and its cheilocystidia are smaller compared to the latter.

Before this study, this species was not recorded from Zhejiang Province, China; thus it is the first report of P. similis from Zhejiang Province.

Figures

Figure 6. Habitat of Panus similis (FJAU 67793) A basidiocarps B pileus C lamellae D stipe. Scale bars: 1 cm.

Figure 7. Microscopic characteristics of Panus similis (FJAU 67793) A basidia B basidiospores C cheilocystidia D sclerocystidia E pileipellis hyphae F skeletal hyphae of context G generative hyphae of context. Scale bars: 10 μm.