Cantharellus wellingtonensis McNabb 1971
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Descriptions
Cantharellus wellingtonensis McNabb 1971
The above description differs from Stevenson's in that spores are inamyloid, and basidia are longer, broader, and (4)-6-sterigmate. There is considerable variation in spore shape in the collections examined, but as this character could not be correlated with other morphological or anatomical characters, it appears to be of little taxonomic significance. The absence of organisation in the hymenophoral trama, and the long, flexuous basidia, indicate that this species belongs in the Cantharellaceae. The specific name cannot be transferred to Cantharellus as the epithet is preoccupied by C. variabilis Quel. 1882 (fide Corner, 1966). Similarly, the practice of naming the species after the author cannot be followed because of the existence of C. stevensonii Berk. & Br. 1875.
Cantharellus wellingtonensis is relatively common in native scrub and forest, often forming patches several square feet in extent. The species readily fits within subgenus Cantharellus sect. Cantharellus as defined by Corner (1966).
habitat : dense groups of all sizes rooting in bare clay or on mossy banks, Wellington Botanic Garden, 2.5.1947 & 12.8.1956; Whangamoa, 9.5.1956; Catchpole, 3.5.1958; all Stevenson.