Tolypocladium ophioglossoides

A parasite fungus of other fungi, affecting the fruit bodies of hypogeous fungi of the genus Elaphomyces, with clavate ascomata 3 to 8 cm in height, a fertile upper part or head dark reddish brown to black, and a sterile stipe with abundant yellow rhizomorphs.

Trama supporting hyphae hyaline, thick-walled, septate, strongly interwoven, branched, 2 to 4 µm wide.

Perithecia ovoid to pyriform, 0.7 to 1 mm in length and 0.3 to 0.45 mm in width.

Asci cylindrical, hyaline, with 8 spores arranged in parallel within the ascus, 250 to 290 µm in length, 5 to 8 µm in width, inamyloid in Melzer's reagent.

Ascospores filiform, smooth, hyaline, thin-walled to slightly thickened, difficult to measure, reported in the literature as 160 to 200 µm in length; when released, these ascospores tend to fragment into parts. The measurements in this study correspond to these part-spores (secondary spores), 3.5 to 5.5 µm long, 1.5 to 2.5 µm wide, with homogeneous contents lacking oil droplets.