GASTEROMYCETES ( BASIDIOMYCOTA ) IN DRY AREAS FROM NORTHEASTERN BRAZIL Iuri

(Some interesting Gasteromycetes (Basidiomycota) in dry areas from northeastern Brazil). Some xerophyles gasteroid fungi from ‘caatinga’ vegetation are joined here. Several specimens belonging to four species were identified: Astraeus hygrometricus (Pers.: Pers.) Morg., Myriostoma coliforme (With.: Pers.) Corda, Podaxis pistillaris (L.: Pers.) Fr. emend. Morse and Tulostoma exasperatum Mont. All of these species, except P. pistillaris, represent first records from the caatinga region. Descriptions of macro and microscopic features are given including taxonomic and ecological considerations.


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The gasteroid mycota from dry areas of northeastern Brazil has received sporadic attention from collectors in the past and has not been adequately collected, few species in the scattered herbaria have been insufficiently reported.This paper highlights a few of the more unusual gasteroid fungi collected in some areas of the caatinga region .
The vegetation of the drier part of northeastern Brazil was called caatinga by the natives of that region, this name being maintained both in common use and scientific literature.According to Andrade-Lima (1981), although it is not the only climate type peculiar to the region, it is nevertheless the climate responsible for the caatinga vegetation.
Low and irregular rainfall and high temperatures are the main reasons for such climate.
Floristically this biome is not a completely isolated vegetation type, with several species with widespread distribution in another biomes.

Material and methods
Collections of Gasteromycetes species basidiomata were made on March/1997 to June/ 1998, in areas of caatinga region from States of Paraíba and Pernambuco.
Climatic conditions are of the BSh type according to Köppen System.Fresh and dried material were prepared for examination in light microscopy by removing small sections of the peridium and gleba from the basidiomata and soaking them in Melzer's reagent and 5% KOH (Singer, 1986).Colour terms in parenthesis are those of Kornerup & Wanscher (1978), abbreviated as KW.
The material is preserved at the Herbarium of the Instituto de Botânica, Seção de Micologia e Liquenologia (SP), abbreviated by acronyms according to the Index Herbariorum (Holmgren et al., 1990).
According to Coetzee et al. (1997), the correct name and author citation are Astraeus hygrometricus (Pers.: Pers.)Morgan, whereas in the Zeller (1948) opinion this species is cosmopolitan throughout temperate climates.
Coker and Couch (1928) stated A. hygrometricus to be a "worldwide in distribution" although it had not been satisfactorily recorded from South America, in spite of several mycological explorations.A. hygrometricus was cited from Brazil by Rick (1961) from Rio Grande do Sul, constituting the first register from the northeastern Brazil.
According to Coetzee et al. (1997) the terms of article 47.1 of the Tokyo Code, the reassessment of this species by Morse (1933) "... does not warrant a change of authorship of this taxon", as has been done by Bottomley (1948).The appropriate citation, as employed in Dring and Rayss (1963), Binyamini (1973) and De Villiers et al. (1989), adopted here to reflect the changes to the ICBN enacted in 1981(Korf, 1983), is Podaxis pistillaris (L.: Pers.)Fr. emend.Morse.
From Schizostoma however, Tulostoma differs in having a well-developed mouth and septate capillitium threads.According to Wright (1987) this group is worldwide in distribution with a presence to warm and sandy places.Currently, 79 species are considered (Hawksworth et al., 1995).
All of the Tulostoma species occurring on the ground, with the exception of two or three species which grow on decaying wood, like as T. exasperatum, characterized by exoperidium covered by long pointed conical warts, shape of basidiospores very strongly warted.

Ackno Ackno Ackno Ackno Acknowledgments wledgments wledgments wledgments wledgments
We acknowledge the financial support from the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Ensino Superior (CAPES) and the Instituto de Botânica (IBt) for the support and laboratory facilities.

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Ph.D. Thesis, University of Pretoria.DeVilliers, J. J. R.; Eicker, A. and Westhuizen, G. C.A.  1989.A new section and two new species of Podaxis (Gasteromycetes) from South Africa.S.