New DNA sequencing results in new Latin names for Wood Ear, Ringless Honey and Velvet Shank,Enoki mushrooms

As some of you may already know, the fungi kingdom has been the target of an historic effort by the scientific community to analyze DNA and properly categorize fungi. Before DNA analysis, identification was based solely on appearance, behaviors and microscopic features. 

Things are changing dramatically as we learn more and more about fungus. Many mushrooms that look and act very similar -- which we had previously assumed meant they were related -- are actually not closely related at all. And may, in fact, be related to other fungus that look nothing like each other. 

As a result, I have updated my blog posts to reflect the current proper Latin/scientific names for the mushrooms I have featured on my site. 

NOTHING about identification or toxicity has changed. ONLY Latin NAMES. 

While many, many, many mushrooms have changed between 2013 and today, (and even more will change in the coming years), the results currently only effect 3 mushrooms identified on my blog: The wood ear, ringless honey and velvet foot / velvet shank / enoki mushroom. Below is a summary of the changes. 

Wood ear mushrooms, Auricularia species

Auricularia auricula-judae was discovered to actually be multiple different species that look and act very similar. The name Auricularia auricula-judae now only applies to the European species.

The Asian species have been renamed as Auricularia heimuer and Auricularia villosula, and the American species are Auricularia angiospermarum (on broadleaf trees) and Auricularia americana (on conifers). 

I have updated my identification post to reflect these changes. The updated post contains a little more detail. 

Ringless honey mushrooms, Desarmillaria species

Originally believed to be a species within the genus Armillaria (the ringed honey mushrooms), recent (2017-2019) Korean DNA sequencing has proved that ringless honey mushrooms are actually different enough to be their own, related, genus. 

The new name for this genus is currently Desarmillaria.

Further sequencing in 2021 revealed that the North American and European species are not exactly the same, meaning the name Desarmillaria tabescens belongs to the European species (which was discovered first) and the new name of Desarmillaria caespitosa has been created for the North American species. 

This is super new information, so we can expect further changes to come. For example, the Asian species of this mushroom is likely distinct as well, and will most likely get a new name. The South American species might also be distinct. 

Flammulina species

This name actually stays the same -- for us in America, at least! The velvet foot or velvet shank mushroom, known as Flammulina velutipes is STILL known as Flammulina velutipes.

However, it was believed previously that this mushroom was identical to the Asian species frequently cultivated as enokitake or enoki. It is now known that enokitake is actually a different species, known as Flammulina filiformis. 

Further changes to come

Of course, DNA sequencing is ongoing and will likely last another couple of decades. The three changes featured here are far from the majority of renaming that has happened in recent years, I've only posted about what effects my blog. If you are using books later than 2020 the likelyhood is that the majority of Latin names have changed, but from an identification of features standpoint, your books are still valid.