Studying Morphology in the Amanitaceae

[ sporographs ]
  • The introduction to the transformative monograph on section Lepidella by Dr. Cornelis Bas (1969)
    [PDF, 11.8 MB] open

  • Meanings of biometric variables - some variables used in Tulloss' descriptions of spores and microscopic anatomy.

  • Summary of RET's methodology ca. 2000 - unrefereed publication in Italian (Tulloss, 2000b), here in the original English.
    [ PDF, approx. 320 KB ] open

    • Of some historical value: Unrefereed publication from the Great Smoky Mtns. fungal ATBI "Butterflies of the Soil" project (prepared in 1999 by RET et al.)
      [ PDF, 441 KB ] open

  • Getting more from your spore data - Graphical and simple arithmetic methods of analyzing your spore data, comparing the spore size and shape of multiple taxa, evaluating the reliability of spore measurements from a single specimen (without knowledge of the taxon to which it belongs), etc.

    • Record your spore measurements in an upside down bargraph. - "And I benefit from this exactly how?" (here)
      • Understanding measurement accuracy (t.b.d.)

      • Rounding decimal values (here)

      • Writing a range for length, width, Q, etc. - Use a standard method that supports the use of sporographs.  (here)

      • Mean, median, and mode - Remember these from high school algrebra? If you are old enough, you were probably never taught the second and third unless you took Statistics. Even if you do recognize all three terms and remember their meanings, have you used them to analyze spore measurements from a single specimen? from many specimens? (t.b.d.)
    • Getting started with sporographs - basics of learning to draw one.
      [PDF, 133 KB] open

    • Introduction to sporographs through Algebra 1 for a secondary school science and engineering honors group: PDFs of slides, workbooks based on actually data on spores from Amanita specimens, etc.  A number of workbooks based on different datasets for different species of Amanita are available, each intended for a group of 1 to 4 students.  (Prepared for Manalapan High School (Freehold Regional School District), Manalapan, New Jersey, U.S.A. First presentation 27 April 2010.)  (slides  workbook no. 1  workbook no. 2  workbook no. 3  workbook no. 4  workbook no. 5  workbook no. 6  workbook no. 7  workbook no. 8  workbook no. 9)

    • Using a sporograph (part I, data comparison)
      Using a sporograph to compare sets of spore data

      • from two or more specimens  (t.b.d.)

      • from a specimen to spore data described for a taxon  (t.b.d.)

      • from two or more descriptions of distinct taxa  (t.b.d.)
    • Using a sporograph (part 2, data interpretation)
      • "Giant" spores.  What? Why? When? (here)

      • Depressed spore values.  Why? (t.b.d.)
    • Forms for recording data

      • RET's form for notes on fresh material, for use whenever collecting Amanita specimens.

        • Blank form.  It is recommended that only the first four pages of this form be used, two pages printed in landscape mode on each side of a single sheet of letter paper.
          [PDF, 112 KB] open

        • Form filled in for a species of sect. Vaginatae
          [ PDF, 524 KB ] open

        • Form filled in for a species of sect. Validae
          [ PDF, 962 KB ] open

      • Recording forms for macrochemical spot testing

        • Form for phenoloxidase spot testing (developed by C. Marr, RET, & A. Montoya-Esquivel) - blank form [ PDF, 105 KB ] open

        • Form for phenoloxidase spot testing filled in for a species of sect. Vaginatae (t.b.d.)