From aceska at telus.net Thu Jun 18 03:39:37 2009 From: aceska at telus.net (Adolf & Oluna Ceska) Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 19:39:37 -0700 Subject: [BEN-L]BEN # 409 Message-ID: <000101c9efbe$063b3ce0$12b1b6a0$@net> BBBBB EEEEEE NN N ISSN 1188-603X BB B EE NNN N BBBBB EEEEE NN N N BOTANICAL BB B EE NN NN ELECTRONIC BBBBB EEEEEE NN N NEWS =20 No. 409 June 17, 2009 =20 aceska@telus.net Victoria, B.C. ----------------------------------------------------------- Dr. A. Ceska, P.O.Box 8546, Victoria, B.C. Canada V8W 3S2 ----------------------------------------------------------- MYCOLOGIST EXTRAORDINAIRE ROBERT J. BANDONI=20 (NOVEMBER 9, 1926 - MAY 18, 2009) From: Jim Ginns - email: ginnsj@shaw.ca=20 (with thanks to Dr. Scott Redhead for comments) For the photo of Dr. Bob Bandoni see = http://bomi.ou.edu/ben/409/bandoni.jpg=20 Robert (Bob) Bandoni was born November 9, 1926 in Weeks, Nevada to = Giuseppe and Albina Bandoni, and graduated from high school in = Hawthorne, Nevada. Awarded a Ph. D. from the University of Iowa in = 1957, Bob in 1958 joined the Botany faculty at the University of British = Columbia. He was an integral part of that department for 50 years and = was awarded the title of Professor Emeritus in 1989. In addition to teaching and supervising graduate and undergraduate = students, he was a major contributor to student textbooks. In 1965 six = UBC faculty members (Robert F. Scagel, Robert J. Bandoni, Glenn E. = Rouse, W.B. Schofield, Janet R. Stein, and T.M.C. Taylor) collaborated = to publish _Plant diversity: An evolutionary approach_; a book that put = the Botany Department onto the North American textbook bestseller list = for almost a decade. And in 1982 R.F. Scagel, R.J. Bandoni, J.R. Maze, = G.E. Rouse, W.B. Schofield, and J.R. Stein published the 570 page = textbook _Nonvascular plants: An evolutionary survey._ To raise the awareness of fungi in the general public in 1964 he = co-authored with Adam Szczawinski a field guide titled _Guide to common = mushrooms of British Columbia_. It was revised and enlarged to 242 pages = in 1976. In the 1970s he helped found the Vancouver Mycological Society. = And he played a major role in the publication of two books on Thailand = mushrooms in 1996 and 2002 (see = www.biotec.or.th/Mycology/Pub_Pre/TFK/index.html). Bob was a mycologist with broad interests. His principal research = interest was a group of fungi commonly referred to as the "Jelly Fungi" = (Basidiomycetes: Heterobasidiomycetes). His early research papers were = of a classical taxonomy nature, i.e., descriptions of the macro- and = micro-morphology via the light microscope. In the early 1970s Bob diverged from the Jelly Fungi to investigate with = colleagues the aquatic fungi occurring in terrestrial habitats = publishing a landmark paper in _Science_ (183: 1079-1081. 1972) with his = student R. Koske on dispersal. He returned to this topic in 1985 and in = collaboration with L. Marvanov=C3=A1 at the Czechoslovak Collection of = Microorganisms published several papers that proposed a new genus and = several new species. For over a decade beginning about 1980 Bob, Franz Oberwinkler and his = colleagues at the Universit=C3=A4t T=C3=BCbingen collaborated to produce = over 20 papers on the Jelly Fungi and their allies. No only did they = describe a number of new species and new genera, but proposed several = new families and orders. Furthermore they employed the latest techniques = (SEM, TEM) to evaluate the taxonomic significance of septal pore = structures, demonstrate parasitism between Jelly Fungi and other fungi, = and begin to revise the classical phylogenetic scheme. Some of the Jelly Fungi produce a yeast stage (in the Tremellales nearly = all species have a yeast stage). Such a stage and the characters of its = cells can be useful in identifying collections. Bob grew many fungi on = nutrient agar in the laboratory and there the yeasts could be studied. = For his interest in yeast stages of Basidiomycetes he became a = contributor to several editions of _The Yeasts, a taxonomic study_. As his experience expanded Bob began to rethink the traditional = circumscription of some genera and reevaluate the taxonomic significance = of some characters. One result was the publication of three major = studies dealing with revisions to the higher levels, i.e., Orders and = Class, of the Jelly Fungi. First was a consideration of the = relationships between genera, i.e., phylogeny, and he proposed an = alternative classification for two of the major orders of the Jelly = fungi (_Trans. Mycol. Soc. Japan_ 25: 489-530. 1984). Then in a = symposium titled The expanding realm of yeast-like fungi he presented a = detailed discussion of the Tremellales and the features that = characterize the reconfigured order (_Studies in Mycology_ 30: 87-110, = 1987). Finally, Bob co-authored with Ken Wells a chapter titled = _Heterobasidiomycetes_ (in D. McLaughlin, E. McLaughlin, P.A. Lemke = (eds.) 2001. _The Mycota_ VII Part B: 85-120) brought together the last = 40 years of taxonomic progress in the Jelly Fungi. These paragraphs are abbreviated highlights in Bob's career. He never = lost his interest in the fungi. When I last met with him in February he = had just finished editing the introduction for the next edition of _The = Yeasts, a taxonomic study_ and was enthusiastically discussing several = in-progress projects.=20 A recent note from a colleague stated "_He was one of my heroes and one = of the last of his breed. He will be missed._" ARE THERE INVASIVE MUSHROOMS IN THE PUGET SOUND REGION? From: Joe Ammirati (includes observations of Joshua Birkebak and Luke = Bayler) _Cronartium ribicola_ J.C. Fisch., the cause of white pine blister rust, = was introduced into eastern North America in about 1900 and into British = Columbia in 1910. It soon became well established on a number of native = white pines and since that time has been considered a destructive forest = pathogen. This is an instance where a plant pathogen was introduced = onto a continent and established itself in natural ecosystems where = susceptible hosts, white pines and species of _Ribes_, were available to = complete its life cycle. It invaded forests of North America! So, are there examples of mushrooms that have been introduced into the = Puget Sound Regions, and have become established in natural habitats? = Records in the Burke Museum fungus herbarium at the University of = Washington indicate that several mushrooms have been introduced into = urban gardens where they tend to persist in rich and woody substrates: = _Melanoleuca verrucipes_ (Fr.) Singer in wood chip and lawns, _Conocybe = aurea_ (Jul. Sch=C3=A4ff.) Hongo, typically in compost, and = _Leratiomyces ceres_ (Cooke & Massee) Spooner & Bridge, in wood chips, = are a few examples that fit this category. So far as we are aware these = mushrooms have not become established in natural habitats. In addition, = species of ectomycorrhizal mushrooms such as _Amanita phalloides_ = (Vaill. ex Fr.) Link, have been found in various places in Seattle but = again have not moved into forests here. This is in contrast to the = situation in the California Bay Region where this species has become = naturalized in oak and mixed forests. Presently we have two mushrooms, _Gymnopus peronatus_ (Bolton) = Anton=C3=ADn, Halling & Noordel. and _Leucocoprinus brebissonii_ (Godey) = Locq., both decomposers, which have become naturalized in the Puget = Sound Region. Based on recent observations and a study of herbarium = specimens, both of these species are recent recruits to the forests in = the Puget Sound lowlands. During the summer months both can be commonly = collected throughout the area, with _Gymnopus peronatus_ being the most = conspicuous of the two because of its tough, persistent fruit bodies. = It is unknown as to exactly when or how these two mushrooms were = established in our region. None-the-less they are prominent mushrooms = during our summer season. LONG-TERM SURVEY AND INVENTORY OF MACROFUNGI ON OBSERVATORY HILL, = VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA (NOVEMBER 2004-MARCH 2009) From: Oluna Ceska, P.O. Box 8546, Victoria, BC, Canada c/o = aceska@telus.net Observatory Hill (a.k.a. Little Saanich Mountain) is a 224 m hill on the = outskirts of Victoria, British Columbia. Renowned Canadian astronomer = J.S. Plaskett selected this hill as a site for a large 1.83 m telescope. = The telescope was finished in May 1918 and the observatory quickly = became an important astronomical research and educational facility. = Since 1975, Observatory Hill has been one of the sites of the NRC = Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics that administers the 71.4 ha of the = hill. This area represents the major part of the hill.=20 The research facilities include two astronomical domes, the main = buildings of the Institute, the educational =E2=80=9CCentre of the = Universe=E2=80=9D, and several other smaller buildings. These structures = are all clustered near the top of Observatory Hill. Relatively large = areas of Observatory Hill were left undeveloped in order to insure good = conditions for astronomical observations. Plant communities of Observatory Hill are typical of the Coastal = Douglas-Fir Biogeoclimatic Zone (Green & Klinka 1994). The drier western = and southern slopes in the upper parts of the hill are open rock = outcrops with a mosaic of mossy/grassy vegetation and several stands of = Garry oak (_Quercus garryana_), with scattered clusters of arbutus = (_Arbutus menziesii_). [Note: The nomenclature of vascular plants = follows Hitchcock & Cronquist (1973).] Stands dominated by Douglas fir (_Pseudotsuga menziesii_) are the major = forest types in the study area. Forests of this type occur in the lower = parts of the hill and on the top plateau. In the lower colluvial slopes, = the forests belong to the _Pseudotsuga menziesii =E2=80=93 Gaultheria = shallon_ and _Pseudotsuga menziesii =E2=80=93 Mahonia nervosa_ site = series; whereas on the upper parts of the top plateau the forests belong = to the drier _Pseudotsuga menziesii =E2=80=93 Melica subulata_ site = series as defined by Green & Klinka (1994). Larger parts of the stands = on the top of Observatory Hill are remnants of an old-growth Douglas-fir = forest, rare on southern Vancouver Island. The area at the eastern base of the hill, below the access road, is = covered with wetter Douglas-fir forest (_Thuja plicata =E2=80=93 = Eurhynchium oreganum_ site series) with scattered broadleaved maple = (_Acer macrophyllum_). Broadleaved maple forms a small stand along a = small ephemeral stream at the bottom of this area. With the exception of Hans Roemer=E2=80=99s work, there has been no = detailed study of the plant communities of Observatory Hill. Hans Roemer = included 10 vegetation sample plots (relev=C3=A9s) from Observatory Hill = in his Ph.D. thesis (Roemer 1972). In his recent studies of rare plants = on the western slope, Roemer documented their habitats with more = vegetation relev=C3=A9s. As to other native forest tree species, there is almost no lodge-pole = pine (_Pinus contorta_) on Observatory Hill, very little red alder = (_Alnus rubra_), scattered western hemlock (_Tsuga heterophylla_) and = some western yew (_Taxus brevifolia_). Western dogwood (_Cornus = nuttallii_) and Scouler=E2=80=99s willow (_Salix scouleriana_) are = occasionally encountered on the eastern slope of the hill. The western slope of the hill hosts several rare species, including = vascular plants, bryophytes, insects, and vertebrates. Many of them are = listed in the Species At Risk Act (SARA) registry: http://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/sar/index/default_e.cfm =20 Most of the rare species occur on the rock outcrops and in the _Quercus = garryana_ stands on the western slope of the hill. Observatory Hill (or Little Saanich Mountain, as it was previously = called) was of high interest to Victoria botanists at the beginning of = the 20th century. C.F. Newcombe, R.J. Anderson and G. Hardy collected = vascular plants on the western slope of Observatory Hill and recorded = several rare plants that are still studied and monitored today: _Allium = amplectens, Aster curtus, Meconella oregana, Idahoa scapigera, Lomatium = dissectum, Lupinus lepidus, Psoralea (Rupertia) physodes, Viola = praemorsa_ (see Ceska 1986). Recently, bryologists have been monitoring = two rare bryophytes (_Bartramia stricta_ Brid. and _Entosthodon = fascicularis_[Hedw.] C. M=C3=BCll. ) that have also been discovered on = the western slope of Observatory Hill. Other uncommon bryophytes of that = area are the liverworts _Sphaerocarpos texanus_ Aust. and _Targionia = hypophylla_ L. Not too much attention has been paid to other parts of = Observatory Hill, or to the fungi. My project, _A Survey of Macrofungi on Observatory Hill_ was suggested = and initiated by a radio astronomer, Dr. Paul Feldman, in November 2004 = and has been supported by the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, a part = of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics.=20 In my surveys, I have been using the _Intuitive Controlled Survey = Method_ that was developed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in = their surveys for rare (=E2=80=9Ctarget=E2=80=9D) species. The Intuitive = Controlled approach calls for the qualified surveyor to conduct a survey = of the area by walking through it and around its perimeters, and closely = examining portions where target species are especially likely to occur. = I have been trying to cover all the possible habitats and substrates.=20 In addition, the fungal surveys require repeated sampling throughout the = season because of the ephemeral fruiting of many fungi (cf. Castellano = et al. 2003). The surveys should also be conducted =E2=80=9Cfor a = minimum of 3 and preferably 5 years to increase the likelihood of = detection=E2=80=9D (Castellano et al. 1999). The review of long-term = surveys by Kendrick (2005) suggests that even a five-year survey does = not detect all the fungi that occur on the site. For simplicity, three main broad =E2=80=9Cecosystems=E2=80=9D in the = study area were distinguished: =20 1. the mosaic of open, mossy rock outcrops with _Quercus = garryana/Arbutus menziesii/Pseudotsuga menziesii_ patches or small = stands; 2. the mixed drier forest with _Pseudotsuga menziesii-Gaultheria = shallon_ and _Pseudotsuga menziesii-Mahonia nervosa_; =20 3. the wetter forest with _Pseudotsuga menziesii, Thuja plicata_, and = _Acer macrophyllum_. Each encountered species was recorded on each visit and specimens of = those that needed microscopic examination for identification were = collected. Selected specimens were photographed, preferably in their = original setting.=20 Laboratory work at home included: Sorting (triage to get to the most perishable collections first) Identification (using a microscope and all the available literature) Drawing (almost all the new, previously not-encountered species were = drawn, including the microscopic characters)=09 Drying (using the dehydrator) Storing (specimens will be deposited in the UBC herbarium) It is generally accepted that 1 hour in the field =E2=89=88 3-4 hours = work on the collections (Castellano et al. 1999). >From November 27, 2004 to March 31, 2009, I have made 121 collecting = visits to Observatory Hill and recorded/collected about 760 species of = fungi: 2004/5 Season =E2=80=93 [> 2004/11/27] =E2=80=93 10 visits =E2=80=93 = total of 216 species 2005/6 Season =E2=80=93 18 visits =E2=80=93 total of 328 species 2006/7 Season =E2=80=93 24 visits =E2=80=93 total of 306 species 2007/8 Season =E2=80=93 38 visits =E2=80=93 total of 467 species 2008/9 Season =E2=80=93 31 visits =E2=80=93 total of 462 species (Note: The =E2=80=9Cseason=E2=80=9D corresponds to the Canadian = government fiscal year that runs from April 1 to March 31 of the = following year.)=20 Many species have occurred only in one season of the study (43%), fewer = in two seasons (18%), and three seasons (15%). Those species that = occurred in four or in all five seasons were even fewer (both about = 12%). Kendrick (2005) found a similar pattern of occurrence in many of = the long-term mycological surveys he analyzed. The majority of species that occur on Observatory Hill are = non-mycorrhizal; mycorrhizal species accounted for 14.7 to 27% of all = the species that appeared in single seasons. There was a substantial = decline in the number of species in the main mycorrhizal genera in the = 2006/2007 season, due to an unusually long and severe drought in the = summer and early fall of 2006. The number of species in the main = species-rich non-mycorrhizal genera remained unaffected even in the = heavy drought season. The list of species for this site could be considered representative for = the mycoflora of many similar sites in the Coastal Douglas-fir = Biogeoclimatic Zone on southern Vancouver Island. Many species represent = northern extensions of more southern species. Some examples of species of special interest: 1) Species that occur on unique substrates/habitats: _Byssonectria = fusispora_ (Berk.) Rogerson & Korf (growing on moss in places where deer = urinate), _Cordyceps militaris_ (L.) Link (parasitic on insect larvae), = _Marasmius chordalis_ Fr. (growing on dead rhizomes of bracken fern = =E2=80=93 _Pteridium aquilinum_), _Rimbachia bryophila_ (Pers.) Redhead = (growing on moss), _Tubaria punicea_ (A.H. Sm. & Hesler) Ammirati, = Matheny & P.-A. Moreau (growing on eroded bases of arbutus, _Arbutus = menziesii_). =20 2) Species that represent northernmost extensions from California, = Oregon and Washington: _Entoloma lignicola_ Largent, _Limacella = glioderma_ (Fr.) Maire, _Limacella illinita_ (Fr.) Maire,_Pouzarella = fulvostrigosa_ (Berk. & Broome) Mazzer, _Pouzarella versatilis_ (Gillet) = Mazzer, _Russula crenulata_ Burl., _Sarcosoma mexicana_ (Ellis & Holw.) = Paden & Tylutki, _Tremellodendropsis tuberosa_ (Grev.) D.A. Crawford, = _Tubaria punicea_. 3) Species rarely collected in North America, disjunct from eastern = North America: _Hypocrea gelatinosa_ (Tode) Fr., _Pholiota albocrenulata_ (Peck) Sacc.=20 4) Genera that require further taxonomical studies: _Calocybe, Cortinarius, Inocybe, Lepiota, Leptonia, Pluteus_, etc. 5) Inconspicuous species that are rarely collected, they might be either = rare or overlooked: _Claudopus byssisedus_ (Pers.) Gillet, _Dacrymyces = ovisporus_ Bref., _Helvella villosa_ (Hedw.) Dissing & Nannf., = _Tetrapyrgos subdendrophora_ (Redhead) E. Horak, _Wilcoxina rehmii_ Chin = S. Yang & Korf. There are some taxonomic problems in many genera of fungi. In my = identifications I tried to consult specialists on certain groups. It is = likely that there are some as yet undescribed species in the material I = have collected, waiting for the specialists to study them. My collections from Observatory Hill have already contributed to solving = taxonomic problems in the genus _Tubaria_ (Matheny et al. 2007). Several = _Cortinarius_ specimens from Observatory Hill are being studied by Prof. = Joe Ammirati (University of Washington, Seattle) and DNA sequencing has = been done on another _Cortinarius_ specimens by Dr. Mary Berbee = (University of British Columbia, Vancouver) and her students (Berbee et = al. 2008, Harrower et. al. 2008). Dr. Berbee is also starting the DNA = study of the genus _Inocybe_ and the Observatory Hill collections will = also be used for this study. The results of each season are summarized in annual reports that are = submitted to the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory. Each report = highlights the results of each collecting season and includes a summary = table that lists all the species collected at Observatory Hill since the = beginning of this survey in November 2004. The 2008/2009 report is = available as a pdf file from the following web sites: http://www.goert.ca/documents/Macrofungi-Observatory-Hill-2008-2009.pdf=20 or http://www.geog.ubc.ca/biodiversity/eflora/documents/Macrofungi_Observato= ry_Hill_2008_2009.pdf=20 Long-term surveys are needed in order to obtain a = =E2=80=9Ccomplete=E2=80=9D list of macrofungi from a given area. = Previous studies have shown that the surveys for macrofungi can yield = new species even after decades of surveying (Hawksworth 2001). In our = Clayoquot Sound study (Roberts et al. 2004) we were finding about the = same number of new, not previously encountered species every year of our = four years long survey.=20 Observatory Hill has proven to be ideal for a long-term mycological = inventory for several reasons: 1) the area is protected to a certain degree by having been managed by a = scientific institution that has been interested in preserving it; 2) the area is close to Victoria and easily accessible; 3) the size of the area is about the maximum that one mycologist can = cover in an intensive field study. I hope that my work will be the beginning of on-going, long-term = monitoring of the mycota in the Coastal Douglas-fir Biogeoclimatic Zone. Acknowledgements=20 I would like to thank Joe Ammirati (University of Washington), the late = Bob Bandoni (UBC), Mary Berbee (UBC Vancouver), Jim Ginns (retired from = the DAOM herbarium in Ottawa), Scott Redhead (DAOM herbarium in Ottawa), = and Else Vellinga (University of California, Berkeley) for help with = identification of several species. My husband, Adolf Ceska, helped me = with the field work, photographic documentation and computing. Dave = Blundon, Ian Gibson, Bryce Kendrick, Paul Kroeger, and Rich Mably joined = me in the field on several occasions. Rose Klinkenberg and Terry = McIntosh corrected some idiosyncrasies of my English. Thanks are due to = Susanna Gibson for commissioning the survey. Last but not least, I would = like to thank Paul Feldman for initiating this project, for his = continuing interest in this survey, and for his editorial help to smooth = my syntax. References Berbee, Mary, L., Emma Harrower, Adam Cappuccino, Jaclyn Dee, Marty = Kranabetter, Paul Kroeger, SeaRa Lim. 2008. _Establishing the baseline = for fungal diversity in British Columbia for times of changing = climate_. Weresub Lecture. Botanical Society of America, 2008 = Conference, Vancouver, BC. [Abstract] = http://2008.botanyconference.org/engine/search/index.php?func=3Ddetail&ai= d=3D1139 =20 Castellano Michael A., Jane E. Smith, Thom O'Dell, Efren Cazares & Susan = Nugent. 1999. _Handbook to strategy 1: Fungal taxa in the Northwest = Forest Plan._ Gen.Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-476. Portland, OR: USDA Forest = Service, PNW Research Station. 195 p. Castellano, Michael A., Efr=C3=A9n C=C3=A1zares, Bryan Fondrick, & Tina = Dreisbach. 2003. _Handbook to additional fungal species of special = concern in the Northwest Forest Plan._ Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-572. US = Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northwest Research Station, = Portland, OR. Ceska, Adolf. 1986. An annotated list of rare and uncommon vascular = plants of the=20 Victoria area. _The Victoria Naturalist_ 42 (5): 1-15. =20 Green, R.N. & K. Klinka. 1994. _A Field Guide to Site Identification and = Interpretation for the Vancouver Forest Region._ Land Management = Handbook Number 28. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Victoria, = B.C. ix+285 p. http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/docs/Lmh/Lmh28.htm =20 Harrower, Emma, SeaRa Lim, Paul Kroeger, & Mary Berbee. 2008. _A survey = of the genus Cortinarius in British Columbia._ Botanical Society of = America, Botany 2008 Conference, Vancouver, BC. [Abstract] = http://2008.botanyconference.org/engine/search/index.php?func=3Ddetail&ai= d=3D846 =20 Hawksworth, D.L. 2001. The magnitude of fungal diversity: the 1.5 = million species=20 estimate revisited. _Mycological Research_ 105: 1422-1432. Hitchcock, C. L. and A. Cronquist. 1973. _Flora of the Pacific = Northwest._ University of Washington Press, Seattle, WA. 730 p. Kendrick, B. 2005. Fungi =E2=80=93 common, rare and in-between. _BEN = 347, April 15, 2005._ http://www.ou.edu/cas/botany-micro/ben/ben347.html =20 Matheny, P.B., E.C. Vellinga, N.L. Bougher, O. Ceska, P.-A. Moreau, M.A. = Neves,=20 & J.F. Ammirati. 2007. _Taxonomy of displaced species of Tubaria._ Mycologia 99(4): 569-585. Roberts, C., O. Ceska, P. Kroeger, & B. Kendrick. 2004. Macrofungi from = six habitats over five years in Clayoquot Sound, Vancouver Island. = _Canadian Journal of Botany_ 82: 1518-1538. = http://pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/cgi-bin/rp/rp2_tocs_e?cjb_cjb10-04_82 =20 Roemer, Hans. 1972. _Forest vegetation and environments on the Saanich = Peninsula, Vancouver Island._ Ph.D. Thesis, University of Victoria, = Victoria, BC. 405 p. = http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/library/documents/bib1024.pdf=20 ________________________________________________________________ =20 Subscriptions: http://victoria.tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/ben-l Send submissions to aceska@telus.net BEN is archived at http://www.ou.edu/cas/botany-micro/ben/ ________________________________________________________________