Taxonomy
Red List Status -
Description
Fruit body: more or less spherical; 50 - 70 mm diameter; cream becoming brown; outer surface dark brown granular.
Stipe: rudimentary; rhizoids attach the fruiting body to the substrate.
Flesh: white becoming yellow.
Gleba (Spore mass): white then yellow and finally olivaceous and liquifying.
Spores: globose; 5 × 5 µm; smooth.
Notes: this puffball is recognised by its spherical shape and pale rose to pink colours. It grows on gravelly soil. Sequencing reveals that it is close to Lycoperdon pyriforme which has recently been transferred to the new genus Apioperdon. It is close to the European Lycoperdon lividum in appearance. Macroscopically distinct from sp 1, but sequences very close!
Support
Found on soil in sclerophyll forests.
Localite
NC 740519, Foret de La Notela, Patrick Leonard, 31 May 2019.
Reference
Cunningham, G.H.(1944). The Gasteromycetes of Australia and New Zealand. John McIndoe. Dunedin.
Vizzini A. and Ercole E. (2017) Detecting the phylogenetic position of Bovista acuminata (Agaricales, Basidiomycota) by an ITS-LSU combined analysis: the new genus Bryoperdon and revisitation of Lycoperdon subgen. Apioperdon. Phytotaxa, 299:1.
Patrick Leonard text 2019
Jerry Cooper sequencing 2020