Craterellus is a genus of generally edible fungi similar to the closely related chanterelles, with some new species recently moved from the latter to the former. Both groups lack true gills on the underside of their caps, though they often have gill-like wrinkles and ridges.
The three most common species, C. cornucopioides, C. lutescens and C. tubaeformis, are gathered commercially and, unlike Cantharellus, can be easily preserved by drying.
Molecular phylogenetics have been applied to the problem of discriminating between Craterellus and Cantharellus genera. Results indicate that the presence of a hollow stipe may be a synapomorphy (a trait corresponding to the evolutionary relationship) which reliably identifies Craterellus species. C. cornucopioides appears to be a single polymorphic species, while C. tubaeformis may be two separate genetic groups separated by geography.
The genera Craterellus and Cantharellus have always been recognized as closely related. The whole group may be recognized by their lack of division into cap and stipe, and their rudimentary or missing gills ("false gills"). Originally Cantharellus was defined by Fries in 1821 to mean all these species together and then in 1825 Persoon separated some species off to create the Craterellus group, with Cr. cornucopioides as type species. Since then some authorities have tried to merge the two genera again, but DNA studies now indicate that (with recent changes) each genus is monophyletic, and so they are likely to remain separate.
In the past Craterellus was distinguished on the basis that
But phylogenetic DNA work starting with the 2000 paper of Dahlman et al. has shown that some species traditionally placed in Cantharellus (C. tubaeformis, C. ignicolor and C. lutescens) really belong in Craterellus, and this means that the second distinguishing rule is no longer valid. On the other hand, the first rule holds up well.
The taxonomy of these fungi is in a state of flux (particularly due to DNA analysis) and many earlier names are now disputed. The following table gives some of the most important ones. Numerous species of Cantharellus have at times been classified under Craterellus, but these are mostly excluded from the table. See also the cladogram at right for a portrayal of the relationships between the species based on recent evidence.
| Image | Name | Current status | Further details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C. caeruleofuscus A.H. Sm. (1968) | Valid. | With blue or purplish shades, growing in sphagnum around the Great Lakes. | ||
| C. calicornucopioides D.Arora & J.L.Frank (2015)[1] | Valid | Closely related to similar European species C. cornucopioides, but separated on the basis of molecular phylogenetics. | ||
| C. cornucopioides (L.) Pers. (1825) | Valid | Type species of the genus. | ||
| C. excelsus T.W. Henkel & Aime (2009) | Valid | Described in 2009 from Guyana. | ||
| C. fallax A.H. Sm. (1968) | May be synonym of C. cornucopioides. | If separated from C. cornucopioides, this is on the basis of its geography and the colour of the underside. | ||
| C. ignicolor (R.H. Petersen) Dahlman, Danell & Spatafora (2000) | Synonym of Cantharellus ignicolor | Although the paper of Dahlman et al., and also one reference of Kuo, puts this in Craterellus, it seems currently to be in Cantharellus. It is very similar to C. tubaeformis but the cap is yellow to orange. C. ignicolor is edible.[2] | ||
| Cantharellus infundibuliformis (Scop.) Fr. (1838) | Synonym of C. tubaeformis. | In the past the species infundibuliformis has been separated from tubaeformis on the basis of spore print colour and spore size, but molecular analysis shows that the distinction is not justified. When this species name was in use it was as Cantharellus, but if reintroduced now it would have to be as Craterellus. | ||
| C. konradii Bourdot & Maire (1930) | Synonym of C. cornucopioides. | If separated from C. cornucopioides, it is distinguished by a yellowish (rather than black) coloration. | ||
| C. lutescens (Fr.) Fr. (1838) | Valid | Closely associated with C. tubaeformis, this species has less well-developed lamellae. | ||
| C. tubaeformis (Fr.) Quél. (1888) | Valid | This common species (sometimes called "yellowfoot") has relatively well-developed gills, a greyish cap, and a hollow yellow stipe. It was moved from Cantharellus to Craterellus due to DNA studies. Those found in western N. America may be a different species from those in Europe and eastern North America. |