The North American species of Pholiota, by Alexander H. Smith and L. R. Hesler.

Smith ~ Hesler

345

Spores 6-7 x 3.5-4 u smooth, apical pore very minute, shape in
face view oblong to elliptic or slightly ovate, in profile obscurely inequilateral to slightly bean-shaped, dull cinnamon in KOH and slightly paler
in Melzer's reagent, wall -0.25 /u thick.
Basidia 4-spored, 17-20 X 5-6 /u, narrowly clavate, ochraceous in
KOH, dull orange in Melzer's (as seen on sections of hymenium). Pleurocystidia abundant, 46-70 x 10-16 bu, ovate-pedicellate, utriform or fusoid
ventricose with an obtuse apex, wall thickened to 1 K, in some, mostly
with amorphous rods and particles in the neck which also often contains
a plug of colloidal material yellow in KOH, in Melzer's reagent content
merely orange-ochraceous or merely dull ochraceous. Cheilocystidia
smaller than pleurocystidia but the same shape and with much more
dried mucilaginous material adhering to them, mostly ochraceous in
KOH. Caulocystidia 40-60 x 9-18,, clavate to utriform or fusoid-ventricose, mostly hyaline, thin-walled and empty (revived in KOH).
Gill trama typical for group, a gelatinous subhymenium of narrow
branched hyphae hyaline in KOH, and a central area of hyaline to yellowish thin-walled smooth hyphae with elongated cells in parallel arrangement; some ochraceous oleiferous hyphae also present. Pileus pellicle a
thick layer of narrow (2-3 u) hyaline to yellowish gelatinous hyphae
with smooth (rarely roughened) walls; hypodermium of rusty brown to
ochraceous nongelatinous hyphae with smooth to roughened walls. Context hyphae mostly with some "colloidal" content becoming ochraceous
to orange red in Melzer's reagent. Clamp connections present.
HABIT, HABITAT, AND DISTRIBUTION: Mostly solitary to scattered
along very rotten conifer logs near meadows at high elevations in late
summer and fall, Colorado, Idaho and Washington.
OBSERVATIONS: The cystidia of this variety are more like those of
P. avellaneifolia, but the same provoking situation prevails in regard to
the thickness of the cystidial wall that one finds in var. lubrica, only
more of the cystidia in var. luteifolia show some wall thickening. The
yellow veil and yellow gills distinguish it from typical lubrica in the field.
It is another of the puzzling series of variants among the species with
typically white to pallid gills, and is included here as part of the documentation for this particular type of variant.
MATERIAL EXAMINED: COLORADO, Mains 5257; IDAHO, Smith
66012 (type), 69560; WASHINGTON, Smith 47622, 48025.
187. Pholiota gruberi sp. nov.
Illustrations: Text figs. 421-424.
Pileus 2-5 cm latuts, late convexus, glaber, viscidulus, rufo-brunneus.
Lamellae confertae, latae adnatae. Stipes 3-5 cm longus, 3-6 mm crassus,
aequalis, sursum subpruinosus, deorsum sparse fibrillosus, sordide pallide
luteus. Sporae 7-9 x 3.5-4 ft. Pleurocystidia 50-70 x 9-14 u fusoide
ventricosa, ad apicem obtutsa vel late rotundata. Cheilocystidia 35-48 x