Disciotis venosa
Disciotis venosa (Pers. : Fr.) Boud.
Morchellaceae
Conservation status. Vulnerable [VU B1ab(ii,iii,iv)].
Morphology and biology. Fruit-bodies (apothecia) up to 15 cm in diameter, sessile or on short stout stalk, sometimes sunk in the soil, cup-shaped to expanded, at large specimens more or less deformed by ribs and furrows, radiating from the centre; hymenium brownish; outside smooth, minutely scurfy, pale gray brown with violet tinge; the flesh thick, fragile, chlorine smell. Spores ellipsoid, 19–25 × 12–15 µm without conspicuous oil drops, hyaline. III–V.
Habitats and populations. On rich soils mainly in deciduous woods, in lawns and along the roads.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Northeast Bulgaria (Ludogorie), Znepole Region (marsh Dragomansko Blato), Vitosha Region (Vitosha Mt), Rila Mts (above the village of Sestrimo).
General distribution. Europe.
Threats. Habitat changes as result of agricultural activities (crop cultivation), wood plantations, livestock breeding, wood extraction, change in native species dynamics (directly impacting habitats).
Conservation measures taken. Included in the Red List of Fungi in Bulgaria. Five of the localities are situated on the territories of the Rila National Park and Bistrishko Branishte Strict Nature Reserve. Some localities are in sites of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Research into the species biology and ecology; inclusion in the National biodiversity monitoring system; preservation of the localities of the species.
References. Burzakov 1929; Hinkova 1954, 1955a, 1958a, b, 1962; Aleksandrov 1970; Gyosheva et al. 2006.
Author: Evtimiya Dimitrova
