Macrotyphula juncea complex

As far as I can see, though the name Macrotyphula juncea has been used here for such long and narrow sporocarps, there is no proof that the species occurs in Australia. Petersen (The Clavarioid Fungi of New Zealand, 1988) recorded only two NZ species, M. rhizomorpha & M. defibulata (the latter with two forms), both described as new in that monograph. He describes rhizomorpha as having fruit bodies of indeterminate length and as “more or less erect extensions of sterile rhizomorphs”, whereas defibulata is up to 100 x 2 mm. On page 80 he says that amongst his herbarium’s specimens, previously named as juncea, there was one from the Brisbane Ranges in Victoria. On re-study it proved to be defibulata. On pages 472-473 of the FNCV’s ‘Fungi of Australia’ Part 3’ (http://www.fncv.org.au/wp-content/themes/field-naturalist/publications/fungi_in_australia/fia-3-basidio-agarico-I.pdf) there is a photo followed by a macro and micro description of Macrotyphula juncea. In the latter are the words “clamp connections absent”, but juncea has clamp connections whereas they are absent (or rarely present) in defibulata and absent in rhizomorpha. The only other report that I’ve found of any microscopic detail of an Australian juncea, is Cleland’s record of spore size of a South Australian collection. The spore sizes reported for European specimens of juncea are larger than those reported for both Australian juncea and defibulata and rhizomorpha.

It seems that when I next encounter these I should make a collection for the ANBG herbarium. I had assumed these were relative common (although difficult to see) in the right habitat and would have been well represented in Australian herbaria. Perhaps if we get some decent rain and mild temperatures this month I will go out again, otherwise, I will look again next year.