Mycena auricoma,a new species ofMycena sectionRadiatae from Japan,andMycena spinosissima,a new record in Japan

Two lignicolous species ofMycena (Agaricales, Basidiomycetes) are described and illustrated from eastern, Japan:Mycena auricoma sp. nov., forming ephemeral coprinoid basidiomata and belonging to sectionRadiatae, was found on a dead fallen twig ofQuercus serrata. It appears to close to a Malaysian species,“Trogia” crinipelliformis. Mycena spinosissima in sectionSacchariferae, new to Japan, was collected from dead bark ofAphananthe aspera, a dead fallen inflorescence ofCryptomeria japonica, and a dead fallen twig ofQuercus serrata.     

Two new species ofMycena from eastern Honshu, Japan

Two new species ofMycena are described and illustrated from eastern Honshu, Japan:Mycena brevicapillata sp. nov. (sectionHiemales), forming tall and slender basidiomata covered overall with long, fusiform or sublageniform dermatocysts, was found on a dead branch ofHydrangea involucrata; Mycena chrysanthemiformis sp. nov. (sectionFragilipedes), forming small, white basidiomata with a campanulate, shallowly sulcate-striate, occasionally subumbonate pileus and adnate-decurrent lamellae, was found on living bark or a dead fallen twig ofAphananthe aspera, Cryptomeria japonica, andZelkova serrata.     

Stand development and regeneration during a 33-year period in a seral Picea glehnii forest, northern Japan

Stand development and regeneration were studied during a 33-year period (1965-1998) in a 1-ha plot in a seral Picea glehnii forest in northern Japan. P. glehnii was mono-dominant in the upper canopy layer, but its understory trees were rarely found in 1965. Other species were scarcely observed in 1965. Many recruited saplings of Abies sachalinensis which had grown to > 5 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) by 1998 had become dominant in the understory layer. Mortality of P. glehnii canopy trees was low. Therefore, the stand basal area increased during the census period due to the growth of surviving canopy trees. Stand development brought about intense competition among trees by increasing local crowding for each tree, and promoted dominance of larger trees and suppression of smaller trees. Although growth rates of understory trees of the two conifers decreased with the increase in local crowding, the growth rate of A. sachalinensis was consistently higher than that of P. glehnii at all extents of local crowding. The recruitment rate (growing to 5 cm DBH) of the two conifers was less affected by local crowding. However, the number of recruits of P. glehnii was only about a quarter of that of A. sachalinensis during the census period because the regeneration of P. glehnii was largely restricted to fallen logs and within 1 m of the base of any live tree > 20 cm DBH. Therefore, our long-term study suggests that A. sachalinensis will dominate over P. glehnii in the seral forest because of higher recruitment and growth rates of the former than the latter in the understory.An erratum to this article can be found at     

Stand structure and growth patterns of understorey trees in a coniferous forest,Taisetsuzan National Park,northern Japan

Stand structure was studied with special reference to growth and mortality patterns of sapling and understorey trees in a coniferousPicea jezoensis andAbies sachalinensis forest in Taisetsuzan National Park, Hokkaido, northern Japan.Picea jezoensis was dominant in the basal area, whileA. sachalinensis was abundant in large numbers in the canopy. Estimated mortalities increased significantly with diameter at breast height (DBH) for bothP. jezoensis andA. sachalinensis in the canopy, but the tendency was different between the two species.Picea jezoensis had a lower mortality rate thanA. sachalinensis, especially at small DBH classes. The spatial distribution of understorey individuals ofA. sachalinensis did not show any significant correlation with the spatial distribution of canopy gaps, but that ofP. jezoensis showed a significant correlation.Abies sachalinensis can grow higher thanP. jezoensis under suppressed conditions; whileP. jezoensis requires canopy gaps for steady height growth. This growth pattern leads to a different waiting height in the understorey (≥2 m in height and 10 cm in diameter at breast height).Abies sachalinensis waited for an improvement in light conditions at higher strata (max. 7 m), whileP. jezoensis waited at lower strata (max. 3 m). The estimated mortality of understoreyA. sachalinensis increased with size, while that of understoreyP. jezoensis decreased. Therefore,P. jezoensis gives priority to survival whileA. sachalinensis gives priority to understorey growth. The difference in the ‘waiting pattern’ between the two species in the understorey was considered a significant feature for the canopy recruitment process ofP. jezoensis andA. sachalinensis.     

Genetic analysis of forest tree populations: isolation of DNA from spruce and fir apices

A method is described for the isolation of DNA from spruce and fir, starting with 3 to 5 apices (5 mg material). Apices are prepared manually from dormant buds harvested in summer and autumn, which are homogenized in 30 l buffer containing 1% SDS. The DNA is extracted with phenol and precipitated with ethanol. Agarose gel electrophoresis and Southern hybridization show that its molecular length is ca. 30–40 kb and that it is readily digested with various restriction enzymes. The method is very fast, it does not need CsCl centrifugation and is therefore suited for the analysis of large numbers of individual trees. Moreover, the buds can be collected all over the year. The yield of the method is up to 30 g of high molecular weight DNA, enough to do several digests and hybridizations.     

Strobilomyces mirandus Corner, a new record from Japan

Strobilomyces mirandus, a bolete new to Japan, is described and illustrated. This is the first record of the species outside of the type locality in Malaysia. It is very distinct from other Strobilomyces species by the unusually colored yellow or golden-orange to brownish-orange of the basidiocarp.     

Three species ofMarasmius new to Japan

Three species ofMarasmius from Japan are described and illustrated here for the first time:M. glabellus, M. pallidocephalus andM. wettsteinii. The specimens were collected in Hokkaido.     

A new variety ofCortinarius elatior from Japan

Cortinarius elatior var.albipes var. nov., found in the deciduous forest is described and illustrated. It is distinguished from the type variety by having a white stipe and longer spores. The differences betweenCortinarius elatior var.albipes and similar taxa are briefly discussed.     

Changes in the Content of Indole-3-Acetic Acid and Cytokinins in Spruce, Fir and Oak Trees after Herbicide Treatment

Treatment of spruce, fir and oak trees with herbicides, which may be one of the forest damage inducing agents, caused pronounced changes in the contents and distribution of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and cytokinins (CKs) one year after treatment, i.e. at the time of the first microscopically visible damage in treated trees. In Picea pungens IAA content increased in the terminal buds by about 105 % and in the apical buds of the first order branches by 220 %. The same was true for young sprouts of Abies nordmanniana, while in leaves of oak trees IAA content was decreased by 15 % after glyphosate treatment and by 30 % after 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) treatment. Another striking feature was a significantly decreased content of IAA in the lower parts of roots in Picea pungens (50 % of the control), which is accompanied by an increase in IAA content in the middle part of the roots (130 %). On the other hand, the IAA content of both sprouts and roots of A. nordmanniana was significantly increased after herbicide treatment.In P. pungens, the content of free cytokinins (sum of zeatin, zeatin riboside, isopentenyladenine and isopentenyladenosine) decreased due to herbicide treatment. The strongest decrease was seen in roots, especially in their upper and middle parts (the average reduction of cytokinin content in roots was 63 %). In the above-ground organs the reduction was seen namely for isopentenyladenine and isopentenyladenosine, while the abundance of zeatin riboside was, on the other hand, higher in treated plants. In Quercus robur leaves, the total content of cytokinins also decreased, namely after glyphosate treatment. In consequence of these changes, CK/IAA ratio decreased pronouncedly in all organs of herbicide-treated trees, with the exception of oak leaves treated by 2,4-D.     

Detecting human impact in the pollen record using data-model comparison

Palaeoecological data are compared with output from climate-driven forest simulation models to separate human influence as a driver of vegetation dynamics from other drivers such as climatic change. The transition from Tilia cordata to Fagus sylvatica dominance in a small forest hollow in Denmark was not predicted by a climate-driven forest simulation model and could be ascribed to anthropogenic impact. This transition can be upscaled to a large region of north-west Europe and contributes to a data-model mismatch for the European distribution of Fagus 6,000 years ago. A data-model mismatch for Picea abies during the last few centuries in southern Scandinavia can also be attributed to anthropogenic impact. Combining pollen data and vegetation models can help with the important task of upscaling from the scale of the forest stand, where anthropogenic impact is readily detectable, to regions and continents, where it is more challenging to distinguish anthropogenic impact from the impacts of climatic change.     

托光柄菇属一中国新记录种

[背景] 托光柄菇属（Volvopluteus）隶属于光柄菇科（Pluteaceae）,目前世界上仅有4个种。[目的] 调查我国东北地区大型真菌资源。[方法] 采集大型真菌标本,对其形态进行详细的观察和描述,提取DNA,测定rDNA ITS序列,基于最大似然法和贝叶斯法构建系统发育树。[结果] 2019–2020年在吉林省延边朝鲜族自治州敦化市采集的标本中,有6份标本为密执安托光柄菇V.michiganensis,该种真菌此前未在我国发现。在系统发育分析中,采自我国的密执安托光柄菇V.michiganensis与该种的模式标本聚为一个分支。[结论] 密执安托光柄菇V.michiganensis为中国新记录种。     

A new species ofCortinarius sectionBolares from Japan

Cortinarius reticulisporus sp. nov., found in deciduous forests, is described and illustrated. It closely resemblesCortinarius rubicundulusin its pileus color and the vivid yellowing of the context on bruising, but differs from the latter in its subglobose to broadly ellipsoid basidiospores with quotient of the length/width smaller than 1.4 and particularly fine lines connecting warts when observed under SEM. The differences betweenCortinarius reticulisporus and other similar taxa are briefly discussed.     

Stomatal patchiness in conifers: experiments with Picea abies (L.) Karst. and Abies alba Mill.

Summary Strong evidence for the occurrence of pronounced stomatal patchiness in needles of Picea abies (L.) Karst. and Abies alba Mill. was found using various indirect methods. Anatomical investigations revealed a septate leaf anatomy for both species, a phenomenon expected if a patchy distribution of stomatal aperture is present. Calculation of some photosynthetic characteristics (e.g. carboxylation efficiency) from gas exchange measurements is shown to be markedly affected by the patchy distribution of stomatal apertures on the needles. The importance of stomatal patchiness in connection with air pollution related forest decline symptoms as well as an hypothesis suggesting a possible role of the phenomenon as a protective mechanism against photoinhibition are discussed.     

A new species ofCortinarius sect.Sericeocybe from Japan

Cortinarius prunicola sp. nov., found in orchards and plantations ofPrunus mume, is described and illustrated. It is characterized by its dry and violet-white carpophores, unpleasant odor, and its close association withP. mume in spring and early summer. The differences betweenC. prunicola and similar species are briefly discussed.     

An improved method for the isolation of total RNA from spurce tissues

After many unsuccessful attempts to obtain biologically active mRNAs from spruce (Picea abies) tissues using available protocols, we have adapted a procedure for the isolation of RNAs from needles, shoots, and callus ofPicea species. Our modifications permit the recovery of and an average of 300 μg RNA per g of needles that is suitable for translationin vitro, northern hybridizations, and the construction of cDNA libraries.     

A new species ofCortinarius Sect.Hydrocybe from Japan

Cortinarius laccarioides sp. nov., found in deciduous forests, is described and illustrated. It is characterized by its small hygrophanous pileus, greyish red or greyish violet lamellae and stipe, and globose to subglobose basidiospores. The differences betweenC. laccarioides and similar species are briefly discussed.     

Two new records of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mycena</Emphasis> sect. <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sacchariferae</Emphasis> from Japan and type study of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mycena cryptomeriicola</Emphasis> (sect. <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sacchariferae</Emphasis>)

Mycena cupulicola sp. nov. and M. adscendens var. carpophila, new to Japan, are described and illustrated. The former is characterized by having lageniform caulocystidia with a slightly thick-walled broadened base and no cheilocystidia. The latter is characterized by having a white pileus up to 1mm in diameter and narrowly conical caulocystidia. Mycena cryptomeriicola was confirmed to have inamyloid basoidiospores.