2023 Volume 64 Issue 2 Pages 41-55
In this study, we described the characteristics of mycelial growth and wood decay of Chorioactis geaster, listed on the 2020 Red List of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan, as an “endangered species Ⅱ (Vulnerable)”. We attempted to produce fruiting bodies by wood-log cultivation of this species. Mycelia grew from 4℃ to 38℃ on a PDA medium, resulting in an optimum temperature of approximately 30℃. The effects of environmental and other factors involved in wood decay were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models. The model selection results showed that the specimens' mass loss was affected by the tree species, incubation temperature, and incubation period and that the density of the bed-log was affected by the duration of cultivation. When the first fruiting bodies developed from Quercus gilva bed-logs in the fall of the 7th y after inoculation, the density and mass loss of the sapwood were approximately 0.62 g/cm3 and 15％, respectively. The fruiting bodies continuously developed for several years, and the hymenium surface of some of the fruiting bodies was uncovered owing to the dehiscence procedure. We concluded that wood-log cultivation may be an effective method for ex-situ conservation of this species.
