ABSTRACT
In this study, 282 species belonging to 120 genera are reported from temperate forests in the North of México. There are 87 edible species, 180 are toxic and 15 species are medicinal. Some of the most well-known edible species occurring in these forests include Amanita caesarea group (A. cochiseana), Amanita bassi, Boletus edulis group, Boletus pseudopinophilus, Boletus barrowsii, Cantharellus cibarius, Lactarius deliciosus, Morchella conica and Flammulina velutipes. Also, some of the most toxic species are Amanita phalloides, Amanita muscaria var. flavivolvata, A. verna, A. bisporigera, A. virosa, Boletus satanas, Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca, Hypholoma fasciculare, Cortinarius violaceus, C. sanguineus, C. pinetorum, C. paleaceus, Scleroderma ariolatum, S. verrucosum, S. citrina and S. cepa as well as Tapinella panuoides, T. atropurpurea and Gyromytra esculenta, and they grow at a wide range of altitudes in these forests. Regarding the medicinal species, namely Ganoderma, with G. applanatum, G. curtisii, G. resinaceum, G. brownii, G. colossus, as well as Humphreya coffeata. Other medicinal species, Coriolus versicolor, Pycnoporus sanguineus, Calvatia craniiformis, C. cyathiformis, and Lycoperon piriforme, were also found. Coprinopsis atrometarius is widely distributed and is considered toxic if mixed with alcoholic drinks. Amanita rubescens is toxic if eaten raw, however people at the High Sierra Tarahumara in the state of Chihuahua eat it after cooking or boiling it 2-3 times, discarding water every time prior to preparation of food. All species studied are associated with temperate forests of Quercus, Quercus-Pinus, Pinus-Quercus and Arbutus and Arctostaphyllos, located either at the Sierra Madre Oriental in the East or Sierra Madre Occidental in the West at altitudes ranging from 500-3500 m. Most good edible species grow in the Sierra Madre Occidental; hosts from 147 species are widely distributed in these forests and they do not represent the totality of species known. Conifers are very well represented, the genus Pinus has 31 species, Pseudotsuga only 1 species, Picea 3 species, and Abies 3 species. The genus Quercus, in the Fagaceae, is very widely distributed and diverse with 103 species. Arbutus and Arctostaphyllos in the Ericaceae have 2 and 4 species respectively. Considering the distribution of fungal species in these forests in the north of Mexico, results showed that 69 species are widely distributed, 115 species are distributed in a medium range as they are not represented in every state or province and 99 species have a relatively low or restricted distribution range. With respect to the habit of the species, 157 species form mycorrhizas with all hosts reported, 109 as saprotrophic and 16 are pathogenic. Many of the mycorrhizal species are edible (i.e. 48 spp.) and 105 of the mycorrhizal species are toxic (e.g. A. verna, A. bisporigera, A. virosa, A. phalloides and Boletus satanas) and none of the mycorrhizal are medicinal. Boletes are the most abundant with 17 genera and 39 species, followed by Amanita with 32 (all mycorrhizal), Cortinarius with 14, Lactarius has 11 species (all mycorrhizal) and Ganoderma has 7 species (all parasitic); Russula, Inocybe and Agaricus have 6 species each, Tricholoma and Scleroderma 5 species each, Leucocoprinus 4 species, all the other genera had 3 or less species each.
