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Montagnea radiosa (Pall.) Šebek

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Scientific name
Montagnea radiosa
Author
(Pall.) Šebek
Common names
květka písečná
czernidłaczek piaskowy (montagniówka piaskowa)
IUCN Specialist Group
Mushroom, Bracket and Puffball
Kingdom
Fungi
Phylum
Basidiomycota
Class
Agaricomycetes
Order
Agaricales
Family
Agaricaceae
Assessment status
Published
Assessment date
2019-03-17
IUCN Red List Category
LC
Assessors
Kałucka, I.L.
Reviewers
Gonçalves, S.C., von Bonsdorff, T. & Dahlberg, A.

Assessment Notes

The content on this page is fetched from The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/125433585/125435470

Justification

Montagnea radiosa is a cosmopolitan fungus growing in dead plant debris in dry and warm grassy habitats including deserts, semi-deserts, savannah and steppes of both Hemispheres. Most records are from western USA and Australia. On a global scale it does not meet the thresholds for a threatened category under any criteria, and is therefore assessed as Least Concern.

Taxonomic notes

Chen (1999) showed considerable variation in ITS region of rDNA of this species as well as variable mating-compatibility. It is possible that Montagnea radiosa represents a cryptic species complex but, at present, there are not enough molecular and mating data from different M. radiosa populations to resolve this question (Nieves-Rivera and Aime 2006). Also, M. arenaria (DC.) Zeller and M. candollei (Fr.) Fr. are distinguished; according to MycoBank, these species are synonyms. According to Index Fungorum, all the three species are separate taxa. However, as Fraiture and Otto (2015) treat M. radiosa, M. arenaria and M. candollei as one species, here they are treated collectively as well, although M. radiosa may be much more rare. Moreover, a similar species, M. haussknechtii, is known to partly overlap the occurrence range of M. radiosa (Dörfelt and Gube 2007), so research on the identity and distribution of M. radiosa is urgently needed.

Geographic range

Montagnea radiosa is a cosmopolitan species known from Europe, Asia, Africa, (including the Canary Islands), North, Central and South America, and Oceania. Most records come from Western USA and Australia.

Population and Trends

The species is widespread across grassy and dry habitats in the tropics up to warm regions of the temperate zone throughout the globe. It is especially frequent in western North America and in Australia. It is probably common also in dryer and warmer regions in Africa, Middle-East and Asia, although these areas are not sufficiently studied. In Europe, the species is rather occasional or very rare and scattered. It is included on Red Lists in Austria, Czechia, Germany, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Spain and can be considered as threatened on the European scale.

Population Trend: unknown


Habitat and Ecology

The species is a thermophilic saprotrophic fungus inhabiting dead plant debris (e.g., rhizomes and roots of Poaceae) in dry and warm grassy habitats (Fraiture and Otto 2015). It grows mostly in dry, open, sandy places, in dunes, deserts, semi-deserts, savannah and steppes, from the tropics up to warm regions of the temperate zone, where it is a relatively frequent fungus (Kreisel 2001, Stasińska and Preis 2002). The species occurs in a wide range of natural, near-natural and semi-natural habitats; rarely, it was found also in anthropogenic sites. It requires mainly sandy, neutral to slightly basic dry soil, with rather low to moderate nitrogen content. It may also occur on brown soil, black earth and loess (Fraiture and Otto 2015).

Threats

On a world wide scale, threats to the species are not sufficiently known. The sites where this species occurs in Europe are threatened mainly by intensification or cessation of grassland management, eutrophication and afforestation.

Conservation Actions

Research on the identity and distribution of M. radiosa as well as on its ecology and habitat requirements is recommended.

Use and Trade

The species is not known to be used.

Source and Citation

Kałucka, I.L. 2019. Montagnea radiosa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T125433585A125435470. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T125433585A125435470.en .Accessed on 7 February 2025

Country occurrence