HUH Seminar Series - Rachel Swenie
Date and Time
Location
Rachel Swenie
Farlow Fellow
Harvard University
Title: From Sequences to Species: Taxonomy and Genetic Diversity of North American Thelephora
Abstract: The fungal genus Thelephora is an enigmatic lineage of ectomycorrhizal fungi that form mushrooms or crust-like fruiting structures. Previous taxonomic research on Thelephora has largely focused on Europe, and around 80 species have been described from North America. However, a recent study assessing global fungal diversity based on soil metagenomic data estimated there exist an astounding 40,000 Thelephora species— more than the total number of described species of mushroom-forming fungi. In this talk, I will discuss ongoing attempts to ground truth this estimate and uncover North American species diversity in this ubiquitous but poorly known group of fungi.