Stinkwort (Dittrichia graveolens): Difference between revisions

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== About ==
Stinkhorns are members of the Phallaceae mushroom family and are easily recognizable by their unique shape and pungent smell <ref name= "Phallaceae">{{cite web |url:https://plantbiology.natsci.msu.edu/mushrooms/phallaceae/ |Title:Phallaceae. (n.d.). |publisher=Michigan State University}}</ref>. Stinkhorns are characterized by their phallic appearances, hence the reference to the term Phallus in their taxonomic group name <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  Some species will grow appendages that give them an octopus-like or lacey skirt appearance <ref name= "Stinkhorns">{{cite web |url:https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/stinkhorns/ |Title:Stinkhorns. 2016. |publisher=University of Wisconsin-Madison}}</ref>.  It is often stated that you will smell a stinkhorn before you actually identify them due to their odor which resembles rotting carrion or dung <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  Stinkhorn stalks range in color from white, beige and olive to bright reds and oranges <ref name= "Stinkhorns">{{cite web |url:https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/stinkhorns/ |Title:Stinkhorns. 2016. |publisher=University of Wisconsin-Madison}}</ref>.  This species of fungus attracts numerous [[soil]] invertebrates, such as blowflies, beetles and slugs <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.
== Habitat and Range ==
Stinkhorns grow naturally in North America and are most diverse in tropical or subtropical regions <ref name= "Phallaceae: The Stinkhorns">{{cite web |url:https://www.mushroomexpert.com/phallaceae.html |Title:Phallaceae: The Stinkhorns. (n.d). |publisher=MushroomExpert.com}}</ref>.  They grow particularly well in Florida and the Gulf Coast region of America, but it is relatively unknown which species of stinkhorn are native or introduced to the region, along with the rest of North America [<ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  These fungi can become easily established in temperate regions such as Western New York after introduction <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>. Stinkhorns are often introduced via human activity, such as the transportation of soil, sod, trees and other organic materials that contain microscopic hyphae from other regions of the country <ref name= "Phallaceae: The Stinkhorns">{{cite web |url:https://www.mushroomexpert.com/phallaceae.html |Title:Phallaceae: The Stinkhorns. (n.d). |publisher=MushroomExpert.com}}</ref>.  Stinkhorn fungi can exist in any environment that provides organic matter as this is their food source <ref name= "Stinkhorn">{{cite web |url:http://hyg.ipm.illinois.edu/pastpest/200519b.html |Title:Stinkhorns: 2005. |publisher=University of Illinois Extension}}</ref>.  They can appear in forests, gardens, lawns and even on bare soils <ref name= "Stinkhorns">{{cite web |url:https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/stinkhorns/ |Title:Stinkhorns. 2016. |publisher=University of Wisconsin-Madison}}</ref>.
== Growth and Toxicology==
Stinkhorns begin their life cycle as small egg-like structures that appear on the surface of the soil or mulch <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  These eggs attach themselves to the fruiting substrate via rhizomorphs, which are delicate white strands of fungal tissue <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  Within as little as a few minutes or hours, a stalk will emerge from the egg structure and stretch upwards <ref name= "Phallaceae">{{cite web |url:https://plantbiology.natsci.msu.edu/mushrooms/phallaceae/ |Title:Phallaceae. (n.d.). |publisher=Michigan State University}}</ref>.  The stinkhorn stalk is topped with a pungent, slimy spore mass known as the gleba <ref name= "Phallaceae">{{cite web |url:https://plantbiology.natsci.msu.edu/mushrooms/phallaceae/ |Title:Phallaceae. (n.d.). |publisher=Michigan State University}}</ref>.  The gleba attracts a series of invertebrates with its stinky odor that feed on the spore mass and then transport the spores elsewhere <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  After the feeding invertebrate leaves the stinkhorn, its spores are spread through excrement or are transported by sticking to the invertebrate via the slime of the gleba until they stick elsewhere in the environment <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>. From here, the spores will establish a new crop of stinkhorn fungus if the environment is suitable, continuing their short-lived life cycle.  While stinkhorns have a somewhat unsettling appearance and odor, they are not poisonous with a few exceptions <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  In fact, many stinkhorns are edible in the egg state and are used for culinary purposes, however correct identification of the spores is essential to avoid potential calamity <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>. 
== Ecosystem Function ==
Stinkhorns play an essential role in their ecosystems as they are decomposers, so they aid in the breakdown of organic litter that would otherwise sit on the soil surface and potentially stifle other species <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  They are also an important food source for many soil invertebrates <ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">{{cite article |vauthors=Phillips E, Gillett-Kaufman JL, Smith ME |title=Stinkhorn Mushrooms |url:https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf%5CPP%5CPP34500.pdf |publisher=EDIS University of Florida |year=2018}}</ref>.  Interactions between stinkhorns and invertebrates are known to be beneficial, but are poorly studied so not much is known about their ecological role besides the basics. 
== References ==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name= "Stinkhorns">P, V. and ian. (2016). Stinkhorns. https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/stinkhorns/.</ref>
<ref name= "Phallaceae">Phallaceae. (n.d.). . https://plantbiology.natsci.msu.edu/mushrooms/phallaceae/.</ref>
<ref name= "Phallaceae: The Stinkhorns">Phallaceae: The Stinkhorns (MushroomExpert.Com). (2011). . https://www.mushroomexpert.com/phallaceae.html.</ref>
<ref name= "Stinkhorn Mushrooms">Phillips, E., J. L. Gillett-Kaufman, and M. E. Smith. 2018. Stinkhorn Mushrooms (Agaricomycetes: Phallales: Phallaceae). EDIS 2018.</ref>
<ref name= "Stinkhorn">Stinkhorns. (2005). . http://hyg.ipm.illinois.edu/pastpest/200519b.html.</ref>
}}

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