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

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The North American Species of Pholiota

GALERINA PHOLIOTA
1) Spore apex, a fair number with 1) Pore characteristic of most spepore more or less distinct. cies.
2) Subhymenium. Gelatinous in a 2) Gelatinous in most species.
few species. 3) Over 75%~ of the species.
3) Pileus cuticle gelatinous in some 4) Dark brown to cinnamon brown
part, less than 25% of species. in great majority, yellow to
4) Spore color yellow to fulvous tawny in a few.
in great majority.
In other words, the features which appear in Galerina have become
combined to be characteristic of the genus in Pholiota. This spells out a
probable direction of evolution that is difficult to deny and does not bring
into the discussion any gastromycetous ancestors. Just as Pholiota has
evolved in several directions so has Galerina and it is in one of these
lines that we find the trend toward Pholiota. Pholiota mintans, P. discolor and P. striatula approach Galerina so closely that when monographing the latter genus the question arose as where to place them. A second
major trend in Galerina is toward or into Cortinarins. G. odorata and
G. cortinarioides are readily mistaken for small Cortinarii. If this connection is accepted, it is of course logical to place Pholiota beside Galerina
in the Cortinariaceae.
If we now consider the species placed in Hemipholiota and Phaeonaematoloma we can find direct trends toward the Strophariaceae; since
the yellow pigmentation, the apical germ-pore of the spore and particularly cystidial types are all found in the Strophariaceae in about the
same pattern. If one disregards the color of the spore deposit, he has no
features left by which Pholiota can be distinguished from the Strophariaceae. We are concerned here with many species so it cannot be claimed
that there are only a few intermediates. As features relating Pholiota to
"Geophila" we find that most of the rusty brown spored specied with a
truncate spore-apex have small spores which exhibit a slight tendency to
become compressed (P. vernalis). In Psilocybe, to which this stirps connects many more species have compressed spores so here again we have a
situation in which certain characters prominent in one genus are found
in a less developed state in a related, presumably more primitive, genus.
As to chrysocystidia, we find them in many more different states of
development from species to species in Pholiota than in "Geophila"
where they are more uniform as to the nature of the inclusion. Here
however the claim cannot be made that this cystidial type is more "primitive" in Pholiota and more advanced in "Geophila" because in the number of species involved and in the diversity of this type of cystidium both
are large groups and show about the same gamut of changes. In other
words in a comparison of subg. Phaeonaematoloma and "Geophila" as to
chrysocystidia and related types, the two groups merge rather evenly.
This might be used as an argument for dividing Pholiota and placing