Morchella tomentosa, commonly called the gray, fuzzy foot, or black foot morel, is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae.[2] M. tomentosa is a fire-associated species described from western North America, formally described as new to science in 2008.[1]
Morchella tomentosa is identified by its post-fire occurrence, fine hairs on the surface of young fruit bodies, and a thick, "double-walled" stem.[1][3] It also has unique sclerotia-like underground parts.[4] Color can range from black and "sooty" to gray, brown, yellow, or white, although color tends to progress from darker to lighter with age of the fruiting body.[2] Three other wildfire-adapted morels were described from western North America in 2012: M. capitata, M. septimelata, and M. sextelata. None of these three new species share the hairy surface texture of M. tomentosa.[5]
Phylogeny
Based on studies of DNA, M. tomentosa is clearly a distinct species apart from the yellow morels (M. esculenta & ssp.) and black morels (M. elata & ssp.).[4] Mushroom collectors also use the common name "gray morel" for M. esculenta-type morels in eastern North America.[2]
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