Diagram of an apothecium showing sterile tissues as well as developing and mature asci.

An ascocarp, or ascoma (plural: ascomata), is the fruiting body of an ascomycete fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hyphae and may contain millions of asci, each of which contains typically eight ascospores. Ascocarps are most commonly bowl-shaped, but may take on a number of other designs. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (964x868, 248 KB) Summary diagram of an ascocarp. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (964x868, 248 KB) Summary diagram of an ascocarp. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... An ascus (plural asci) is the spore-bearing container produced in the ascocarps of ascomycete fungi. ...

Classification of ascocarps

The ascocarp is classified according to its placement (in ways which are not fundamental to the basic taxonomy). It is termed epigeous if it grows above ground, as with the morels, whilst underground ascocarps, such as truffles are hypogeous. Species Morchella angusticeps Morchella conica Morchella costata Morchella crassipes Morchella elata Morchella esculenta Morchella gigas Morchella semilibera Morchella spongiola Morchella spongiola var. ... Species Tuber melanosporum Tuber brumale Tuber aestivum Tuber uncinatum Tuber mesentericum Tuber magnatum Truffle describes a group of edible mycorrhizal (subterranean) fungi (genus Tuber, class Ascomycetes, division Mycota). ...

The form of the hymenium is divided into the following types (which are important for classification). Apothecia can be relatively large and fleshy, whereas the others are microscopic — about the size of flecks of ground pepper.

• Apothecium: here the ascocarp is open above like a cup. The fertile layer is free, so that many spores can be dispersed simultaneously. The morel, Morchella, an edible mushroom favored by gourmets, is a mass of apothecia fused together in a single large structure or cap. The genera Helvella and Gyromitra are similar.

The ascocarp of a morel contains numerous apothecia.

Perithecia of Nectria

• Cleistothecium: in this case the ascocarp is round with the hymenium enclosed, so the spores do not automatically get released, and fungi with cleistothecia have had to develop new strategies to disseminate their spores. The truffles, for instance, have solved this problem by attracting animals such as wild boars which break open the tasty ascocarps and can spread the spores inside over a wide area. Cleistothecia are found mostly in fungi which have little room available for their ascocarps, for instance those which live under the bark of trees or under the ground like truffles. Also the dermatophyte Arthroderma forms cleistothecia.

Diagram of a perithecium. The ascospores (green) are in 8 pairs in each ascus.

• Perithecium: this has the shape of a skittle or a ball. Its distinguishing feature is that on top it has a small pore, the ostiole, through which the spores are released one by one when ripe (in contrast to apothecia where they are released together). Perithecia are found for example on Xylaria (Dead Man’s Fingers, Candle Snuff) and Nectria.

• Pseudothecium: this is similar to a perithecium, but the asci are not regularly organised into a hymenium and they are bitunicate, having a double wall which expands when it takes up water and shoots the enclosed spores out suddenly to disperse them. Example species are Apple scab (Venturia inaequalis) and the horse chestnut disease Guignardia aesculi.

Species Morchella angusticeps Morchella conica Morchella costata Morchella crassipes Morchella elata Morchella esculenta Morchella gigas Morchella semilibera Morchella spongiola Morchella spongiola var. ... The relative sizes of the Cap (pileus) and Stalk (stipe) vary widely. ... Species Morchella angusticeps Morchella conica Morchella costata Morchella crassipes Morchella elata Morchella esculenta Morchella gigas Morchella semilibera Morchella spongiola Morchella spongiola var. ... Image File history File links Nectria. ... Image File history File links Nectria. ... Binomial name Sus scrofa Linnaeus, 1758 Young piglets feeding The Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) is the wild ancestor of the domestic pig. ... A dermatophyte is a fungus parasitic upon the skin. ... Apple scab is a disease of apple trees (genus Malus) caused by the ascomycete fungus Venturia inaequalis. ...

See also

• Basidiocarp

Mushroom In fungi, the fruiting body (also known as sporocarp) is a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures, such as basidia or asci, are borne. ...

Reference

• The section on classification was translated from the German article on Ascomycota.