Crepidotus pini

Crepidotus pini is a new species described for science by Jančovič in 2022.

The specimens presented here were collected in 2020. At the time of collection and subsequent microscopic analysis, they raised doubts because they did not match any known species.

The closest match was C. applanatus, but the brownish color of the pilei and the pine wood substrate did not fully fit.

Years later, while reading the article "Phylogeny of Crepidotus applanatus Look-Alikes Reveals a Convergent Morphology Evolution and a New Species C. pini" in the Journal of Fungi, the species identity was confirmed.

Crepidotus pini, unlike C. applanatus and C. malachius, grows on Pinus spp. wood. The cap color varies from yellowish tones in youth to more brownish in mature stages, in contrast to the other two species which are whitish or paler. Spore dimensions also provide clues, as pini falls intermediate between the average values of both taxa.

The specimens studied were collected in September on a heavily decayed stump in a Pinus radiata plantation at approximately 600 m a.s.l. in the municipality of Orozko (Bizkaia).