Cortinarius wahkiacus – Facesoffungi number: FoF 02045

Cortinarius wahkiacus Ammirati, Beug, Liimat. & Niskanen

Index Fungorum number: IF 551709 Facesoffungi number: FoF 02045

Etymology: Named for Wahkiacus Washington, USA

Holotype: Michael Beug 09MWB111813 (WTU).

Pileus 45–60 mm diam., convex to±plane, silky dry, streakedwith yellowbrown(RawUmber)and cinnamonbuff or umber brown on light vinaceous cinnamon. Lamellae adnexed, distant to subdistant, cinnamon or light brown to yellowish brown (Buckthorn Brown) when mature. Stipe 70–80 mm long, 8–12 mm thick above, ± equal down to an ±enlarged base inserted in soil, surface dry, honey yellow to cinnamon buff or light vinaceous cinnamon. Universal veil white, sheathing lower stipe, forming inferior ring. Basal mycelium white, with white rhizomorphs. Taste mild. Odour slightly musty to fishy. Macrochemicalreaction (40%KOH): on pileus surface fuscous to olivaceou sblack, stipe apex olive to fuscous, interior citrine drab to olive, stipe base fuscous black to dark olive, rhizomorphs white. Exsiccatae: Pileus dark brown to dark reddish brown, one with large, central white veil patch. Lamellae dark brown. Stipe surface light brown to pale in some places above but often blackish. Basal mycelium, sheathing veil above base and rhizomorphs white. Context pale to brownish discoloured blackish. Basidia 4-spored, 8–10×31–38μm, clavate, hyaline or brownish in KOH. Basidiospores 10–11.6×5.4–6.6μm (20 spores, holotype specimens), amygdaloid to±ellipsoid, moderately to coarsely verrucose, apiculus somewhat curved, somewhat to strongly dextrinoid. Lamella trama hyphae smooth, not encrusted in KOH. Pileipellis in KOH: Surface hyphae cylindrical to broadly cylindrical, 8–10 μm wide, hyaline or brownish, some encrusted. Subtending layer, hyphae 8–21μm wide, hyaline, walls refractive, some encrusted, gradually grading into trama hyphae. ITS sequence distinct from the other known members of the section Bovini, and differs from them in the ITS region by more than 20 substitutions and indel positions.

Ecology and distribution: Found from forests of Quercus garryana or Q. garryana and Pinus ponderosa. Producing basidiomata in late autumn. Known from Washington, Western North America.

Material examined: USA, Washington, Klickitat County, Lower Staats Road, N 45°50′36.4″, W121°24 ′ 33.7″, under Quercus garryana, 18 Nov 2013, leg. Michael Beug 09MWB111813 (holotype, WTU), (isotype, K(M): 200670). Klickitat County, Wahkiacus, under Quercus garryana and Pinus ponderosa, N 45°49′20.6″, W121°05′ 38.9″, 20 Nov 2013, leg. Michael Beug 03MWB112013 (WTU, K).

Notes: Cortinarius wahkiacus is a medium-sized, brown species with a white, sheath-like universal veil covering the lower part of the stipe, and with rather large, amygdaloid, moderately to coarsely verrucose, dextrinoid spores. It belongs to section Bovini and as other members of the group has exsiccatae with dark brown to blackish brown pileus. Cortinarius eldoradoensis Bojantchev is another species of section Bovini encountered in Western North America, but it fruits in the spring and has somewhat shorter spores, 8.5–10.5×5–6μm.