Support MycoNote →

MycoNote

Hymenophore

Toothed

Teeth — mushrooms with the trait «Teeth»

When you examine a mushroom's spore-bearing surface, the classic forms sometimes take on transitional or unusual shapes. A toothed hymenophore is a specific anatomical structure that helps you reliably identify a number of particular genera, especially wood-decaying macrofungi.

0 species in the database.

No mushrooms with this trait yet.

Anatomy and distribution of the toothed hymenophore

The toothed hymenophore is often seen as a morphological variation on the border between the gilled, pored and spined types. M.Ya. Zerova notes in her "Handbook of the Fungi of Ukraine" that a surface can become toothed in two main ways: either it consists of short, flattened projections (teeth) that look like torn pores or short spines (as in the genus Irpex), or it's made of classic gills whose edges are uneven, notched or saw-toothed.

In "Mushrooms Demystified", David Arora stresses how important this feature is for identifying mushrooms that grow on wood. For example, in the sawgills (Lentinus) and the genus Lentinellus, deeply notched (saw-toothed) gill edges are the main marker of the genus. This evolutionary adaptation probably helps increase the area from which spores are released into the wind.

In his guide "Mushrooms", Roger Phillips describes transitional forms, such as polypores with maze-like pores (for example, Daedalea quercina), where the pore walls tear with age to form a structure that visually resembles coarse, flat teeth.

For a forager, spotting a toothed hymenophore is a cue to turn to the specialist sections of the field guide (wood-decaying fungi). There are no deadly poisonous species among mushrooms with a clearly toothed hymenophore or saw-toothed gills, but many of them are inedible because of their extremely tough, woody texture. The famous shiitake (Lentinula edodes) is a close relative of the sawgills, although its gills are more even.

Questions and answers

How is a toothed hymenophore different from a spined one?
A spined hymenophore consists of long needles (spines), round in cross-section, that hang freely downward (as in hedgehog mushrooms). A toothed hymenophore consists of shorter, often flat or irregular teeth that can look like torn pore walls or slashed gill blades.
Which mushrooms have notched gill edges?
This is a classic feature of the families Lentinaceae and Auriscalpiaceae (in particular, the genera Lentinus, Neolentinus, Lentinellus). Under a hand lens, their gill edges look like the blade of a saw.
Can toothed mushrooms be poisonous?
Species with distinct teeth instead of gills (for example, Irpex lacteus or Radulomyces) are inedible because they are tough and small, but they don't contain life-threatening toxins. Mushrooms with saw-toothed gills (for example, the tiger sawgill) are sometimes considered conditionally edible when young.
Can a pored mushroom turn toothed?
Yes. In some polypores (for example, species of the genus Schizopora or Irpex) the hymenophore first forms as tubes or a maze, but as the fruiting body grows, the tube walls tear apart and turn into clusters of sharp teeth.

Sources

  1. 1.Зерова М.Я. та ін. Визначник грибів України. 1979
  2. 2.Roger Phillips. Mushrooms (Roger Phillips)
  3. 3.David Arora. Mushrooms Demystified
  4. 4.Index Fungorum