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BioImages: The Virtual Field-Guide (UK)
Ellis, M.B. & J.P., 1997
Microfungi on Land Plants: An Identification Handbook
An encyclopaedic and fairly comprehensive account of the microfungi that grow on living or dead material of native British plants. Commonly cultivated species are also included.
The microfungi covered comprise ascomycetes, mildews (powdery and downy), hyphomycetes, coelomycetes, rusts, smuts and a few other basidiomycetes. It has to be said that the parasitic groups (coelomycetes, mildews, rusts and smuts) were not the Ellises' forté and the coverage is sometimes less complete, but this is a small criticism of a monumental piece of work.
The handbook is arranged in the following chapters:
| Plurivorous | Wood | and | Bark | Fungi
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| Plurivorous | Leaf-litter | Fungi
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| Fungi | Specific | to | Trees, | Shrubs | and | Woody | Climbers
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| Plurivorous | Fungi | on | Herbaceous | Plants
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| Fungi | Specific | to | Herbaceous | Plants | other | than | Grasses, | Rushes, | Sedges, | Bur-reeds | and | Reedmaces
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| Plurivorous | Fungi | on | Grasses
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| Fungi | Specific | to | Grasses
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| Fungi | on | Rushes, | Sedges, | Bur-reeds | and | Reedmaces
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| Fungi | on | Ferns, | Horsetails | and | Clubmosses
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| Fungi | Parasitic | on | Rusts | and | Powdery | Mildews
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Yeasts, eg blooms on fruit, are excluded.
The "specific" sections are arranged under host genus, sorted alphabetically. The entries for many trees are subdivided into: On Leaves, On Catkins/Fruit/Seeds and On Wood and Bark. Finally, longer entries are further subdivided into Discomycetes, Other Ascomycetes, Hyphomycetes, Coelomycetes and (occasionally!) basidiomycetes. Large sections begin with a key to genera; larger genera also have keys.
The final species accounts are quite short, but more than half are illustrated with line drawings, principally of the microscopy.
The main difficulty of using the handbook is that each collection must be checked through the appropriate (often rather long) "Plurivorous" section, as well as the host-specific entries.
The second addition also contains a 35 page supplement of additions and corrections to the main work. An asterisk in the left margin beside the main text indicates a correction or addition.
Absolutely indispensable to anyone interested in the plant pathology of our flora. Thoroughly recommended.
| Publisher |
The Richmond Publishing Co. Ltd |
| Pages |
868 |
| ISBN |
0 85546 245 0 |
| Edition |
2nd (New Enlarged) |
| Comments and Corrigenda |
The book, excellent as it is, conveys the impression that fungi are more faithful to their preferred hosts than is actually the case - fungi don't read the books!
Although many parasitic species are restricted in their host range, there are many plurivorous saprobes as well as less specific parasites and pathogens, so the appropriate "Plurivorous" section must always be checked. As always, identifications should always be confirmed by checking the microscopic features.
P231: Bramble rusts key (couplet 1): Aecia of Phragmidium violaceum are also common on bramble stems and closely resemble uredia of Kuehneola uredinis: P. violaceum causes violet spots, K. uredinis causes yellow ones and is less common.
P244: Rusts on Salix atro-cinerea etc: Telia: spore WALL thickened to 10 at apex.
P471 & 494 Rotula graminis is a typo for Rutola graminis. |
| Coverage |
Aims to cover all the microfungi associated with living and dead, wild (and commonly cultivated) plants in the British Isles. 3,500 species are covered, which, although not comprehensive, represents the vast majority including almost all that are likely to be found by the non-specialist. |
| Illustrations |
2000 line and stipple drawings on 213 pages at the back. |
| Identify |
Under a Compound Microscope (also useful to examine under a Stereo Microscope). |
| Specimen Prep. |
Microscopy of spores of various types. |
| Difficulty |
Most are quite easy, if the host plant is identified. Unfortunately, each collection needs to be checked through the appropriate (and rather long) "Plurivorous" section, as well as the host-specific entries.
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Malcolm Storey
Taxonomic Scope
| OOMYCOTA Arx, 1967 (a group of mainly plant-parasitic fungi) |
Identification |
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Current |
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| ASCOMYCOTA Whittaker, 1959 (spore-shooters) |
Identification |
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Current |
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| COELOMYCETES (stem- and leaf-fungi) |
Identification |
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Current |
Not well-covered - Grove's 2-volume work remains very useful, despite being 70 years old. |
| Ascodichaena rugosa Butin, 1977 (a discomycete) |
Identification |
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Current |
The entry is misleading as it doesn't mention the microconidia. |
| (Hyphomycetes) (Moulds) |
Identification |
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Current |
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| Botryobasidium Donk, 1931 (a genus of resupinate fungi) |
Identification |
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Current |
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| UREDINIOMYCETES D. Hawksw., B. Sutton & Ainsw., 1983 (urediniomycete fungi) |
Identification |
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Current |
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| USTILAGINOMYCETES R. Bauer, Oberw. & Vánky, 1997 (ustilaginomycetes) |
Identification |
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Current |
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| Synchytrium de Bary & Woronin, 1863 (a genus of chytridiomycete fungi) |
Identification |
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Current |
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