| Lentinus levis | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Basidiomycota |
| Class: | Agaricomycetes |
| Order: | Polyporales |
| Family: | Polyporaceae |
| Genus: | Lentinus |
| Species: | L. levis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Lentinus levis (Berk. & M.A. Curtis) Murrill 1915
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Pleurotus levis (Berk. & M.A. Curtis) Singer 19511 | |
Lentinus levis is a species of fungus in the family Polyporaceae. It can be found in subtropical to tropical climates in North America and is edible.
Taxonomy
It was described by Miles Joseph Berkeley and Moses Ashley Curtis in 1853 and given its current name in 1915 by William Murrill.
For a long time thought to be a member of Pleurotus genus, it has been moved to genus Lentinus.7
Description
The whitish cap of the agaric is 6–16 centimetres (2+1⁄4–6+1⁄4 in) wide, with decurrent gills and a fairly central stem up to 12 cm (4+3⁄4 in) long and 2.5 cm (1 in) thick.8 It has a mild to sweet smell and the spore print is white.8
Similar species
Pleurotus dryinus has similar fruiting bodies with a smoother cap and a more persistent partial veil.8 Pleurotus pulmonarius has a similar floral odor.9
Distribution and habitat
In nature the species grows in subtropical to tropical climates10 on dead hardwood. In North America, it can be found in the Mountain states and further east from June to October.8
Uses
As a saprotroph, it can be cultivated.11 It is recognized and sometimes collected as a food by Huichol people of Mexico, although they prefer eating other, less chewy mushrooms.12
References
References
- Singer (1951), In: Lilloa 22:271
- Kuntze (1898), In: Revis. gen. pl. (Leipzig) 3(2):506
- Kuntze (1891), In: Revis. gen. pl. (Leipzig) 2:866
- Berk. & M.A. Curtis (1859), In: Ann. Mag. nat. Hist., Ser. 3 4:296
- Mont. (1856), In: Syll. gen. sp. crypt. (Paris):146
- Berk. & M.A. Curtis (1853), In: Ann. Mag. nat. Hist., Ser. 2 12:427
- For P. levis, see "Species Fungorum - Pleurotus levis page". Species Fungorum. Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Retrieved 2017-02-03.
- Audubon (2023). Mushrooms of North America. Knopf. p. 414. ISBN 978-0-593-31998-7.
- Petersen, Ronald H.; Nicholl, David B. G.; Hughes, Karen W. (1997). "Mating systems of some putative polypore - agaric relatives". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 207 (3–4): 135–158. doi:10.1007/BF00984386. ISSN 0378-2697. S2CID 28789058.
- Peterson, Ronald H.; Hughes, Karen W. & Psurtseva, Nadezhda. "Biological Species in Pleurotus". The University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Archived from the original on 2011-03-02. Retrieved 2011-03-11.
- Sobal, M.; Morales, P.; Martinez, W.; Pegler, D. N.; Martinez Carrera, D. (1997). "Cultivation of Lentinus levis in Mexico". Micologia Neotropical Aplicada (Mexico). ISSN 0187-8921.
- Haro-Luna, Mara Ximena; Ruan-Soto, Felipe; Guzmán-Dávalos, Laura (2019-09-16). "Traditional knowledge, uses, and perceptions of mushrooms among the Wixaritari and mestizos of Villa Guerrero, Jalisco, Mexico". IMA Fungus. 10 (1): 16. doi:10.1186/s43008-019-0014-6. ISSN 2210-6359. PMC 7325656. PMID 32647620.