A Nomenclatural Study of Armillaria and Armillariella species

Armillariella. Later, Karsten (1881) raised Armillariella to generic rank and
transferred several species there, with the type species presumably being
Armillariella mellea (Vahl:Fr.) Karsten. The genus Armillariella gained wide
acceptance in Europe (Patouillard, 1887; Kühner and Romagnesi, 1953, and
others) and to some extent in the Americas (e.g. Singer 1949, 1962, 1986;
Pomerleau 1980; Baroni 1981). With the almost universal acceptance of Aguricus
melleus Vahl as the type species of Armillaria among agaricologists and
pathologists (Watling et al. 1982), Armillariella Karsten has become an obligate
synonym (typonym, nomenclatural synonym) of Armillaria (Fr.:Fr.) Staude,
because both are based on the same type species (Greuter 1988: International
Code of Botanical Nomenclature [ICBN] Art. 14.4). During the height of
acceptance of the genus Armillariella, Herink (1973) had already recognized the
problems with using Armillariella for these fungi and made many new
combinations in the genus Armillaria. Another typonym of Armillaria is
Polymyce Earle (1909). Rhizomorpha Roth (1791), based on vegetative
rhizomorphs of these fungi is apparently a name for the anamorph of Armillaria
(Dank 1962), although it is not possible at this time to correlate species of
Rhizomopha with particular Armillaria species. Although Rhizomorpha is
apparently an older name for the anamorph of the genus, it may not be used for
the teleomorph (ICBN Art. 59.1).
Singer (1962, 1986) rejected the validity of Armillaria (Fr.:Fr.) Staude and
accepted Armillaria Kummer (1871), contending that Kummer intended to erect a
new genus. However, as Donk (1962) and Watling et al. (1982) have stated, a
careful reading of Kummer’s introductory material indicates that he intended to
"...[ follow Fries as much as possible]" (translation Donk 1962). Armillaria
Kummer, as recognized by Singer (with type species Agaricus luteovirens Alb. &
Schw.:Fr.), consisted of a genus of mycorrhizal species with amyloid spores and
a divergent lamellar trama. Accepting Armillaria (Fr.:Fr.) Staude left the taxon
recognized by Singer nameless until Pouzar (1957) erected the genus Floccularia
to accommodate Agaricus luteovirens Alb. & Schw.:Fr., as pointed out by
Redhead (1987) and Bon (1990). It should be noted here that the Armillaria vs.
Armillariella controversy involved only what the names of the genera should be
and not the circumscription of the generic concepts.
Thus the modem concept of the genus Armillaria (Fr.:Fr.) Staude includes
tricholomatoid Basidiomycotina with basidiomata usually emerging from black
rhizmorphs, with adnate to decurrent gills bearing basidia with pale, nonamyloid,
non-dextrinoid basidiospores. The nutritional status is saprophytic to
parasitic (wood decay or root rot fungi) and generally not mycorrhizal. The
genus is placed by most authors in the Tricholomataceae Roze (1876) although
Fungiflora - Armillaria
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