Suillus pungens, commonly known as the pungent slippery jack or the pungent suillus, is a species of fungus in the genus Suillus. The fruit bodies of the fungus have slimy convex caps up to 14 cm (5+1⁄2 in) wide. The mushroom is characterized by the very distinct color changes that occur in the cap throughout development. Typically, the young cap is whitish, later becoming grayish-olive to reddish-brown or a mottled combination of these colors. The mushroom has a dotted stipe up to 7 cm (2+3⁄4 in) long and 2 cm (3⁄4 in) thick. On the underside on the cap is the spore-bearing tissue, consisting of minute vertically arranged tubes that open as a surface of angular, yellowish pores. The presence of milky droplets on the pore surface of young specimens, especially in humid environments, is a characteristic feature of this species. S. pungens can usually be distinguished from other similar Suillus species by differences in distribution, odor and taste. An ectomycorrhizal species, S. pungens forms an intimate mutualistic relationship between its underground mycelium and the young roots of the associated host tree. In its native range, the fungus is associated mainly with Monterey pine and bishop pine in coastal California, but it also occurs with a wider range of planted and introduced pines in the state, including stone pine, maritime pine, and Aleppo pine, especially in urban areas. The species has also been reported as an introduction in New Zealand (commonly with introduced Monterey pine) and in Australia with introduced pines. Several studies have investigated the role of S. pungens in the coastal Californian forest ecosystem it occupies. Although the species produces more fruit bodies than other competing ectomycorrhizal fungi in the same location, it is not a dominant root colonizer, and occupies only a small percentage of ectomycorrhizal root tips. The fungus's propensity to fruit prolifically despite minimal root colonization is a result of its ability to efficiently transfer nutrients from its host for its own use. The mushroom is considered edible, but is not highly regarded.
Taxonomy The fungus was first described scientifically by American mycologists Harry D. Thiers and Alexander H. Smith in their 1964 monograph on North American Suillus species. The type collection was made on the campus of San Francisco State University in San Francisco. Smith and Thiers classified S. pungens in section Suilli—a grouping of related species characterized by the presence of either a ring on the stipe, a partial veil adhering to the cap margin, or a "false veil" not attached to the stipe but initially covering the tube cavity. A 1996 molecular analysis of 38 different Suillus species used the sequences of their internal transcribed spacers to infer phylogenetic relationships and clarify the taxonomy of the genus. The results suggest that S. pungens was genetically similar to S. collinitus, S. neoalbidipes, S. pseudobrevipes, S. luteus, S. brevipes, S. weaverae, and certain isolates of S. granulatus. The specific epithet is derived from the Latin pungens, and refers to the pungent aroma of the fruit bodies. The mushroom is commonly known as the "pungent slippy jack" or the "pungent suillus". It has also been referred to as the "slippery jack", a common name applied to several Suillus species.
Description
The cap of S. pungens is roughly convex when young, becoming plano-convex (flat on one side and rounded on the other) to somewhat flat with age, and reaches diameters of 4–14 cm (1+1⁄2–5+1⁄2 in). The cap surface is sticky to slimy when moist, becoming shiny when dried. The surface is smooth but is sometimes streaked with the sticky glue-like cap slime when older. The cap color is highly variable in this species, and the cap is often variegated with a mixture of light and dark colors. When young it is dirty-white to olive with pale olive splotches. Maturing caps can retain the color they had when young, or become tawny to orange-yellow to reddish-brown, or a combination of these colors. The cap margin is initially rolled inward and has a cottony roll of white tissue, but becomes naked and curves downward with age. The flesh is 1–2 cm (3⁄8–3⁄4 in) thick, white and unchanging in young fruit bodies, frequently changing to yellow when older.
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