| name | Amanita ravenelii |
| name status | nomen acceptum |
| author | (Berk. & M. A. Curtis) Sacc. |
| english name | "Ravenel's Lepidella" |
| images |
 1. Amanita ravenelii, West Virginia, U.S.A.   2. Amanita ravenelii, eastern U.S.A.  3. Amanita ravenelii, West Virginia, U.S.A.  4. Amanita ravenelii, Weems, Lancaster Co., Virginia, U.S.A.  5. Amanita ravenelii, Knoxville, Knox Co., Tennessee.  6. Amanita ravenelii, ('the face on Mars') pileal wart through 10× hand lens, Hawn St. Pk., Ste. Genevieve Co., Missouri, U.S.A.  7. Amanita ravenelii, uncommon narrow bulb falsely suggesting A. rhopalopus as noted by Bas (1969), Transylvania Co., NC, USA.  8. Amanita ravenelii, small warts and lower, hyphal layer of universal veil from giant, water-soaked specimen, found by Thea Chesney during NAMA 2015, North Carolina, U.S.A. |
| intro | Amanita ravenelii is a striking, moderately common species of the southeastern U.S. As Dr. Bas noted in his monograph on section Lepidella, this species can be confused with A. rhopalopus when it has a narrow (sometimes even dog-legged) bulb on the stem. However, examination of the base of the warts (often, even without a hand lens) will show that the warts rest on a base of pallid, radially fibrillose material. In the range of the present species, this character is distinctive and can be used for field identification. |
| cap | The cap of Amanita ravenelii is 90 - 199 (-297) mm wide, white atdrying, globose at first, finally planoconvex. The cap context is white, sometimes slowly pale sordid tannish when cut or bruised, 11 - 19.5 (-35±) mm thick above the stipe, thinning evenly to the margin. The cap margin is nonstriate, slightly incurved at first, appendiculate with relatively large submembranous material in fragments up to 20 mm long or as 2 - 3 mm rim around pileus margin; the volva appears on the cap as warts, subpyramidal to truncate-pyramidal over disc, near mid-radius as concentric rings of floccose scales, becoming progressively finer toward margin, with sides of warts radially fibrillose to matted-fibrillose (photos 2, 4, and 6, above). The adnate warts are concolorous at first and become tan, then pale red-brown, then red-brown, and finally brown. |
| gills |
The gills of this species are free to narrowly adnate without a decurrent line on the stipe, crowded, pale yellowish white to yellowish cream in mass, pale yellowish white to cream in side view, 10.5 - 18 mm broad, infrequently forking in some specimens, with edge finely pulverulent and white (browning on edge with age); the short gills are rounded truncate to subtruncate to subattenuate to attenuate, of diverse lengths, and plentiful. |
| stem | The stipe is 82 - 125 (-194) × 15 - 27 (-41) mm, whitish, becoming yellowish with age or sometimes intensely rusty-red-brown, becoming faint pinkish in longitudinal crevices, cylindric or narrowing downward, flaring at apex, sometimes slightly flattened, floccose-flocculose in about upper third of stipe, longitudinally striate below, sometimes fibrillose below, sometimes bearing submembranous to subfelted bands of greatly varying widths in lower two-thirds (down to the top of the bulb). The stipe's bulb is deeply radicating, often showing longitudinal splitting, often of irregular form, sometimes onion-shaped, sometimes doglegged, 66 - 204 × 32 - 63 mm, often with rusty stains; its context is solid, white, becoming rusty brown very slowly on cut surfaces, with larva tunnels concolorous to pale yellowish to rusty brown. The annulus is submembranous to subfelted to compressed-flocculose at first, with large rectangular warts on the underside at the edge; it eventually falls away in large subfelted chunks. The volva is arranged in obscure partial rings (widely separated) on the upper half of the stipe's bulb and is floccose but thin at first, about the same color as the bulb. The bulb surface sometimes splits into recurved scales tipped with universal veil material. |
| spores |
The spores measure (7.0-) 8.0 - 11.9 (-14.0) × (4.6-) 5.2 - 7.7 (-8.5) µm and are ellipsoid to elongate (rarely broadly ellipsoid or cylindric) and amyloid. Clamps are present on bases of basidia. |
| discussion |
Odor is lacking at first, then of “chlorine” or "old
ham"
(decaying protein) type (but not too
unpleasant). Taste has not been
recorded. This species occurs in deciduous or mixed deciduous-conifer forest in association with trees including oak and/or pine, and sometimes also including beech and/or hickory. The species' range includes the region between New Jersey, Illinois, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Missouri, but is probably more extensive. Bas' stirps Ravenelii includes the present species as well as these others: A. crassa Bas (Argentina), A. pyramidifera D. A. Reid (Australia), and A. strobilacea (Cooke) Sacc. (Australia). Other taxa from Australia have been claimed to belong with this group.—R. E. Tulloss |
| brief editors | RET |
| name | Amanita ravenelii | ||||||||
| author | (Berk. & M. A. Curtis) Sacc. 1887. Syll. Fung. 5: 15. | ||||||||
| name status | nomen acceptum | ||||||||
| english name | "Ravenel's Lepidella" | ||||||||
| synonyms |
≡Agaricus ravenelii Berk. & M. A. Curtis. 1859. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 3 4: 284. The editors of this site owe a great debt to Dr. Cornelis Bas whose famous cigar box files of Amanita nomenclatural information gathered over three or more decades were made available to RET for computerization and make up the lion's share of the nomenclatural information presented on this site. | ||||||||
| etymology | genitive of Latinized name of the collector, "Ravenel's" or "of Ravenel" | ||||||||
| MycoBank nos. | 162136, 452853 | ||||||||
| GenBank nos. |
Due to delays in data processing at GenBank, some accession numbers may lead to unreleased (pending) pages.
These pages will eventually be made live, so try again later.
| ||||||||
| holotypes | K | ||||||||
| revisions |
Bas. 1969. Persoonia 5: 400, figs. 111-117. Tulloss, here | ||||||||
| intro |
The following text may make multiple use of each data field. The field may contain magenta text presenting data from a type study and/or revision of other original material cited in the protolog of the present taxon. Macroscopic descriptions in magenta are a combination of data from the protolog and additional observations made on the exiccata during revision of the cited original material. The same field may also contain black text, which is data from a revision of the present taxon (including non-type material and/or material not cited in the protolog). Paragraphs of black text will be labeled if further subdivision of this text is appropriate. Olive text indicates a specimen that has not been thoroughly examined (for example, for microscopic details) and marks other places in the text where data is missing or uncertain. The following material not derived from Dr. Bas' monograph is based on original research by R. E. Tulloss. | ||||||||
| pileus | 90 - 199 (-297) mm wide, white at first, dingy cream (3-4A3) after some in situ drying, unchanging when cut or bruised, globose at first, finally planoconvex, tacky, shiny to subshiny; context white, sometimes slowly pale sordid tannish when cut or bruised, 11 - 19.5 mm thick above stipe, thinning evenly to margin; margin nonstriate, slightly incurved at first, appendiculate with relatively large submembranous material in fragments up to 20 mm long or as 2 - 3 mm rim around pileus margin; universal veil as warts, subpyramidal to truncate-pyramidal over disc, near mid-radius as concentric rings of floccose scales, becoming progressively finer toward margin, concolorous at first, becoming tan, then pale red-brown, then red-brown, finally brown, adnate, with warts have distinct upper portion (sometimes appearing "felted" per Bas) resting on fibrillose base, with upper parts of larger warts (at least) having sides vertically grooved like hillside ravines, with fibrils extending subradially from fibrillose bases. | ||||||||
| lamellae | narrowly adnate without decurrent line on stipe, crowded, pale yellowish white to yellowish cream in mass, pale yellowish white to cream in side view, 10.5 - 18+ mm broad, infrequently forking in some specimens, with edge finely pulverulent and white (browning on edge with age); lamellulae rounded truncate to subtruncate to subattenuate to attenuate, of diverse lengths, plentiful. | ||||||||
| stipe | 82 - 125 (-194) × 15 - 27 (-41) mm, whitish, becoming yellowish with age or sometimes intensely rusty-red-brown, becoming faint pinkish in longitudinal split, cylindric or narrowing downward, flaring at apex, sometimes slightly flattened, floccose-flocculose in about upper third of stipe, longitudinally striate below, sometimes fibrillose below, sometimes bearing submembranous to subfelted bands of greatly varying widths in lower two-thirds (present down to top of bulb); bulb deeply radicating, often showing longitudinal splitting, often of irregular form, sometimes onion-shaped, sometimes doglegged, 66 - 204 × 32 - 63 mm, often with rusty stains; context solid, white, becoming rusty brown very slowly on cut surfaces, with larva tunnels pale yellowish to rusty brown; partial veil submembranous to subfelted to compressed-flocculose at first, with large rectangular warts on underside at margin, eventually falling away in large subfelted chunks; universal veil as obscure partial rings or completely undulating rings, widely separated on upper half of bulb, floccose but thin at first, reduced to thin and slightly raised firm line by maturity, concolorous, bulb surface sometimes splitting into recurved scales tipped with universal veil material. | ||||||||
| odor/taste | Odor lacking at first, then of “chlorine” type (but not too unpleasant). Taste not recorded. | ||||||||
| macrochemical tests |
Spot test for tyrosinase (L-tyrosine) - positive on stipe context and (immediately) on stipe surface (only portions tested). Test voucher: Tulloss 8-31-85-A. | ||||||||
| pileipellis | not distinguishable, poorly developed. [Note: The apparent pileipellis seen between warts is probably the basal, filamentous layer of the universal veil flattened by stretching.—RET] | ||||||||
| basidia | 45 - 58 × 12.6 - 18.0 µm, 4-sterigmate, with sterigmata up to 4.5? × ?? µm; clamps present, ??. | ||||||||
| basidiospores |
Bas (1969): [60/5/-] 8.0 - 11.0 × (5.0-) 5.5 - 7.0 (-7.5) μm, (Q = 1.40 - 1.80; Q = 1.50 - 1.60), colorless, hyaline, thin-walled, amyloid, ellipsoid to elongate, sometimes ovoid or obovoid; apiculus not described; contents subgranular, refractive; color in deposit not recorded. composite of data from all material revised by RET: [305/14/12] (7.0-) 8.0 - 11.9 (14.0) × (4.6-) 5.2 - 7.6 (-8.5) µm, (L = (8.3-) 8.5 - 11.1 µm; L’ = 9.8 µm; W = 5.6 - 7.0 (-7.4) µm; W’ = 6.3 µm; Q = (1.23-) 1.33 - 1.86 (-2.50); Q = 1.46 - 1.75 (-1.81); Q’ = 1.55), hyaline, colorless, smooth, thin-walled, amyloid, ellipsoid to elongate, occasionally cylindric, infrequently broadly ellipsoid, often adaxially flattened, sometimes expanded at one end, rarely langeniform; apiculus sublateral, cylindric; contents ??; white in deposit. | ||||||||
| ecology | Solitary to subgregarious. At 4 - 300+ m elev. In mixed hardwood forest including oaks or in sandy/loamy clay under Quercus alba, Q. prinus, Ilex opaca, and Juniperus virginiana (as scrub) or with Acer sp., Carya sp., Cornus florida, Q. rubra?, Q. stellata, and Pinus echinata, etc. within 40 m or in loamy soil over quarzite conglomerate under Q. alba and Fagus grandifolia or in clay. | ||||||||
| material examined |
Bas (1969):
U.S.A.:
MARYLAND—Prince Georges Co. - Laurel,
13.viii.1966 A. Sánchez & E. Hacskaylo CU 48841
p.p. (CUP).
NORTH CAROLINA—Orange Co. - Chapel Hill,
Purefoy's Mill, 4.x.1913 W. C. Coker 878
(NCU).
SOUTH
CAROLINA—Unkn. Co. - unkn. loc.,
material revised by RET: U.S.A.: ARKANSAS—Unkn. Co. - unkn. loc., | ||||||||
| discussion |
from Bas (1969): "The type consists of four young specimens and one damaged, barely mature specimen. Characteristic are the ventricose-fusiform bulb of the short stem and the rather coarse, radially fibrillose, conical to truncate warts on the cap. The type collection of A. ravenelii is undoubtedly conspecific with what American authors usually call A. strobiliformis. "The collection Smith 9797 cited is the one to which the photograph published by Gilbert (1941: pls. 64, 65) belongs. I have also studied one of the two specimens of Coker 856; unfortunately it was not the specimen pictured in Coker's plage (1917: p. 50); moreover it appeared to belong to another species. "In A. ravenelii the upper part of the bulb and the lower part of the stem are often adorned with thick, fleshy, imbricate scales or sheaths. These structures come into being by splitting of the flesh of stem and bulb. The remnants of the vola are usually rather inconspicuous in this region, though initially they probably provoke the process of splitting. "The typical form of A. ravenelii is very distinctive because of the coarse, conical to truncate, radially fibrillose warts with felted tips or central patches, towards the margin, gradually passing into broad, fibrillose scales. The pileipellis does not gelatinize, except in aging specimens, and then the outer surface of the warts may also become involved in the process. Very characteristic is usually also the broadly ventricose, sometimes even onion-shaped bulb. "The radially fibrillose structure of the warts is not always very clear, however, and then the microscope must be used to be certain that the base of the warts consists mainly of parallel, refractive, yellowish hyphae and only scattered inflated cells. "Specimens with clavate-subfusiform bulbs and not very conspicuously fibrillose warts resemble A. rhopalopus (see discussion p. 417 [of Bas 1969]). "Among the clamp-bearing species A. ravenelii, together with A. crassa from S. America and A. strobilacea from Australia form a small group, chiefly characterized by the structure of the volva, which finds its counterpart among the clampless species in the group of A. perpasta. "Peck (1880: 46) was apparently the first who applied the name 'A. strobiliformis' to the present species; as early as 1898 Lloyd (1898:6) expressed well-founded doubt about this." The European species A. strobiliformis is described on this site here. A very large specimen with cap 297 mm wide was collected by Thea Chesney at the NAMA 2015 foray and was much photographed. The stem plus bulb had a total length of 364 mm. | ||||||||
| citations | —R. E. Tulloss | ||||||||
| editors | RET | ||||||||
Information to support the viewer in reading the content of "technical" tabs can be found here.
| name | Amanita ravenelii |
| name status | nomen acceptum |
| author | (Berk. & M. A. Curtis) Sacc. |
| english name | "Ravenel's Lepidella" |
| images |
1. Amanita ravenelii, West Virginia, U.S.A. 2. Amanita ravenelii, eastern U.S.A. 3. Amanita ravenelii, West Virginia, U.S.A. 4. Amanita ravenelii, Weems, Lancaster Co., Virginia, U.S.A. 5. Amanita ravenelii, Knoxville, Knox Co., Tennessee. 6. Amanita ravenelii, ('the face on Mars') pileal wart through 10× hand lens, Hawn St. Pk., Ste. Genevieve Co., Missouri, U.S.A. 7. Amanita ravenelii, uncommon narrow bulb falsely suggesting A. rhopalopus as noted by Bas (1969), Transylvania Co., NC, USA. 8. Amanita ravenelii, small warts and lower, hyphal layer of universal veil from giant, water-soaked specimen, found by Thea Chesney during NAMA 2015, North Carolina, U.S.A. |
| photo |
RET - (1, 3) West Virginia, U.S.A.; (2) eastern
U.S.A.; (4) Virginia, U.S.A.; (5) Knoxville, Knox
Co., Tennessee, U.S.A. Patrick Harvey - (6) taken through 10× hand lens, Hawn State Park, Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri, U.S.A. [Note: contrast and color adjusted by RET using Adobe Photoshop.] Jay Justice - (7) uncommon narrow bulb (in this case on mature to overmature specimen) that falsely suggests A. rhopalopus as noted by Bas (1969), Dupont State Forest, Transylvania County, North Carolina, USA. Rob Russell - (8) small warts and exposed lower, hyphal layer of universal veil on giant, water-soaked specimen found by Thea Chesney during NAMA 2015, North Carolina, U.S.A. |
| name | Amanita ravenelii |
| bottom links |
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| name | Amanita ravenelii |
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Spore data sets and their composite
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