Chapter 12 Biogeography and Ecology of Tulasnellaceae Franz Oberwinkler, Darı´o Cruz, and Juan Pablo Sua´rez 12.1 Introduction Schroter€ (1888) introduced the name Tulasnella in honour of the French physicians, botanists and mycologists Charles and Louis Rene´ Tulasne for heterobasidiomycetous fungi with unique meiosporangial morphology. The place- ment in the Heterobasidiomycetes was accepted by Rogers (1933), and later also by Donk (1972). In Talbot’s conspectus of basidiomycetes genera (Talbot 1973), the genus represented an order, the Tulasnellales, in the Holobasidiomycetidae, a view not accepted by Bandoni and Oberwinkler (1982). In molecular phylogenetic studies, Tulasnellaceae were included in Cantharellales (Hibbett and Thorn 2001), a position that was confirmed by following studies, e.g. Hibbett et al. (2007, 2014). 12.2 Systematics and Taxonomy Most tulasnelloid fungi produce basidiomata on wood, predominantly on the underside of fallen logs and twigs. Reports on these collections are mostly published in local floras, mycofloristic listings, or partial monographic treatments. F. Oberwinkler (*) Institut für Evolution und O¨ kologie, Universita¨tTübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 1, 72076 Tübingen, Germany e-mail:
[email protected] D. Cruz • J.P. Sua´rez Museum of Biological Collections, Section of Basic and Applied Biology, Department of Natural Sciences, Universidad Te´cnica Particular de Loja, San Cayetano Alto s/n C.P, 11 01 608 Loja, Ecuador © Springer International Publishing AG 2017 237 L. Tedersoo (ed.), Biogeography of Mycorrhizal Symbiosis, Ecological Studies 230, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-56363-3_12 238 F. Oberwinkler et al. Unfortunately, the ecological relevance of Tulasnella fruiting on variously decayed wood or on bark of trees is not understood.