Hygrophorus yukishiro sp. nov., a new vernal edible mushroom from Nagano Prefecture, Japan

Abstract

A novel basidiomycetous species, Hygrophorus yukishiro, is described from Japan. The basidiomata of this fungus have been referred to as “yuki-shiro”, “yuki-take”, and “yuki-wari”, and used as an edible mushroom in the central region of Nagano, Japan. Hygrophorus yukishiro fruits in the early spring season under oak-dominated stands. Morphological and phylogenetic analyses of the internal transcribed spacer region of the nuclear ribosomal RNA gene indicated that H. yukishiro is a sister species of H. arbustivus and belongs to section Hygrophorus, subsect. Fulventes. Hygrophorus yukishiro is similar in its external morphology and fruiting phenology to H. roseobrunneus, H. leucophaeo-ilicis, and H. roseodiscoideus, but differs in the color and texture of its pileus surface and microscopic characteristics.