Agaricales is an order of fungi within the class Agaricomycetes and the phylum Basidiomycota. As one of the most diverse groups, it includes around 30 families, 350 genera, and roughly 10,000 species. Traditionally, Agaricales were known for their mushroom shape and gills, which hold basidia, the spore-bearing cells. However, modern classification relies on genetic relationships, meaning not all Agaricales have gills or a classic mushroom form. The oldest known fossil of this order, Gondwanagaricites magnificus , dates back 125 million years. Examples of Agaricales include the portobello mushroom ( Agaricus bisporus ), shiitake ( Lentinula edodes ), and death cap ( Amanita phalloides ).

What types of fungi belong to the Agaricales order?

The Agaricales order, within the phylum Basidiomycota , is a diverse group of fungi with around 30 families, 350 genera, and 10,000 species. Agaricales include gilled mushrooms and related forms, with basidia produced in a hymenial fruiting layer. Some notable families and genera within Agaricales: * Agaricaceae Includes the Agaricus genus, with edible species like the field mushroom ( A. campestris ) and the white button mushroom ( A. bisporus ). Also contains the inky caps ( Coprinus ) and puffballs, such as Lycoperdon and Calvatia . * Amanitaceae Contains the Amanita genus, including deadly species like the destroying angels ( A. bisporigera, A. ocreata, A. verna, and A. virosa ) and the death cap ( A. phalloides ). * Marasmiaceae Includes the edible shiitake mushroom ( Lentinula edodes ) and bioluminescent species like the poisonous jack-o-lantern ( Omphalotus illudens ). * Physalacriaceae Includes the Armillaria genus, with species like the edible honey mushroom ( A. mellea ), a destructive forest pathogen. * Pleurotaceae Contains the oyster cap ( Pleurotus ostreatus ), an edible shelf fungus when young. * Strophariaceae Includes the Pholiota genus, found on wood, with some species causing heartwood rot. * Tricholomataceae Contains Tricholoma magnivelare , an edible mushroom, and inedible forms like the poisonous T. pardinum . * Other Families Schizophyllaceae and Fistulinaceae, formerly in Polyporales, are now included in Agaricales. Schizophyllum commune grows on decaying wood, and Fistulina hepatica , or beefsteak fungus, is an edible species found on trees.

What do Agaricales fungi usually look like?

Agaricales is one of the most diverse order of fungi within the phylum Basidiomycota, containing around 30 families, 350 genera, and approximately 10,000 species. While traditionally classified by their mushroom shape and the presence of gills, modern classifications are based on genetic relatedness, so they may or may not have gills and/or a mushroom shape. The Agaricaceae family, the best-known family within Agaricales, includes fungi with mushroom-shaped fruiting bodies and puffballs. A typical agaric sporophore (fruiting body) consists of a cap (pileus) and a stalk (stipe), emerging from an underground mycelium network.

Where can Agaricales fungi be found in nature?

Agaricales are a diverse order of fungi with about 30 families, 350 genera, and 10,000 species. The oldest known fossilized mushroom from this order, Gondwanagaricites magnificus , dates back 125 million years. Agaricales can be found in various natural environments. For example, fly agaric mushrooms ( Amanita muscaria ) grow in forests, pastures, and fields throughout temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere.

How do Agaricales fungi get their food?

Agaricales, an order of fungi, obtain nutrition through different methods. Unlike plants, fungi don't use carbon dioxide and light for energy; instead, they get it by absorbing organic matter. Saprotrophic fungi get their food from dead organic material, acting as decomposers. Parasitic fungi, on the other hand, feed on living organisms, typically plants, which causes disease. Fungi secrete enzymes that break down carbohydrates and proteins, which are then absorbed through the walls of the hyphae. Many fungi establish mycorrhizal relationships with plants, where the fungus invades the root to absorb nutrients. This mutually beneficial association allows the plant to receive mineral nutrients, while the fungus gets nutrients from the plant.

Why are Agaricales important for the environment or for humans?

Agaricales, a diverse order of fungi, contains about 30 families, 350 genera, and roughly 10,000 species. This order includes many well-known edible species, such as the shiitake mushroom and the cultivated white button mushroom , which are economically important and widely consumed. Some Agaricales are destructive forest pathogens, such as the honey mushroom, which causes root rot in trees. Certain species, like those in the Amanita genus, are highly poisonous, emphasizing the need for careful identification. Some varieties of Agaricales have demonstrated bioluminescence , while others can be used as meat substitutes in vegetarian dishes.

Agaricales

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Two cinnamon-brown Cortinarius cinnamomeus mushrooms with slender yellowish stems growing among green moss.

Two shaggy mane mushrooms, Coprinus comatus, with tall, white, shaggy caps and slender stems growing among green foliage on the forest floor.

Two Amanita pantherina mushrooms with brown caps covered in white spots grow among moss and fallen leaves.

Close-up of several shiitake mushrooms, showing their light brown caps and textured stems.

Cluster of oyster cap mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) growing without stems on decaying wood, showing layered, pale caps and gills against a rough, natural background.

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Related Topics:: Marasmiaceae; Amanitaceae; oyster mushroom; Agaricaceae; Pholiota

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Agaricales

order of fungi

Also known as: agaric, gill fungi, gill fungus

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Top Questions

What are Agaricales?
Agaricales is an order of fungi within the class Agaricomycetes and the phylum Basidiomycota. As one of the most diverse groups, it includes around 30 families, 350 genera, and roughly 10,000 species.

Traditionally, Agaricales were known for their mushroom shape and gills, which hold basidia, the spore-bearing cells. However, modern classification relies on genetic relationships, meaning not all Agaricales have gills or a classic mushroom form. The oldest known fossil of this order, Gondwanagaricites magnificus, dates back 125 million years.

Examples of Agaricales include the portobello mushroom (Agaricus bisporus), shiitake (Lentinula edodes), and death cap (Amanita phalloides).
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What types of fungi belong to the Agaricales order?
The Agaricales order, within the phylum Basidiomycota, is a diverse group of fungi with around 30 families, 350 genera, and 10,000 species. Agaricales include gilled mushrooms and related forms, with basidia produced in a hymenial fruiting layer.

Some notable families and genera within Agaricales:
* Agaricaceae Includes the Agaricus genus, with edible species like the field mushroom (A. campestris) and the white button mushroom (A. bisporus). Also contains the inky caps (Coprinus) and puffballs, such as Lycoperdon and Calvatia.
* Amanitaceae Contains the Amanita genus, including deadly species like the destroying angels (A. bisporigera, A. ocreata, A. verna, and A. virosa) and the death cap (A. phalloides).
* Marasmiaceae Includes the edible shiitake mushroom (Lentinula edodes) and bioluminescent species like the poisonous jack-o-lantern (Omphalotus illudens).
* Physalacriaceae Includes the Armillaria genus, with species like the edible honey mushroom (A. mellea), a destructive forest pathogen.
* Pleurotaceae Contains the oyster cap (Pleurotus ostreatus), an edible shelf fungus when young.
* Strophariaceae Includes the Pholiota genus, found on wood, with some species causing heartwood rot.
* Tricholomataceae Contains Tricholoma magnivelare, an edible mushroom, and inedible forms like the poisonous T. pardinum.
* Other Families Schizophyllaceae and Fistulinaceae, formerly in Polyporales, are now included in Agaricales. Schizophyllum commune grows on decaying wood, and Fistulina hepatica, or beefsteak fungus, is an edible species found on trees.
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2. Agaricales
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What do Agaricales fungi usually look like?
Agaricales is one of the most diverse order of fungi within the phylum Basidiomycota, containing around 30 families, 350 genera, and approximately 10,000 species. While traditionally classified by their mushroom shape and the presence of gills, modern classifications are based on genetic relatedness, so they may or may not have gills and/or a mushroom shape.

The Agaricaceae family, the best-known family within Agaricales, includes fungi with mushroom-shaped fruiting bodies and puffballs. A typical agaric sporophore (fruiting body) consists of a cap (pileus) and a stalk (stipe), emerging from an underground mycelium network.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Where can Agaricales fungi be found in nature?
Agaricales are a diverse order of fungi with about 30 families, 350 genera, and 10,000 species. The oldest known fossilized mushroom from this order, Gondwanagaricites magnificus, dates back 125 million years.

Agaricales can be found in various natural environments. For example, fly agaric mushrooms (Amanita muscaria) grow in forests, pastures, and fields throughout temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
How do Agaricales fungi get their food?
Agaricales, an order of fungi, obtain nutrition through different methods. Unlike plants, fungi don't use carbon dioxide and light for energy; instead, they get it by absorbing organic matter.

Saprotrophic fungi get their food from dead organic material, acting as decomposers. Parasitic fungi, on the other hand, feed on living organisms, typically plants, which causes disease. Fungi secrete enzymes that break down carbohydrates and proteins, which are then absorbed through the walls of the hyphae.

Many fungi establish mycorrhizal relationships with plants, where the fungus invades the root to absorb nutrients. This mutually beneficial association allows the plant to receive mineral nutrients, while the fungus gets nutrients from the plant.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Why are Agaricales important for the environment or for humans?
Agaricales, a diverse order of fungi, contains about 30 families, 350 genera, and roughly 10,000 species. This order includes many well-known edible species, such as the shiitake mushroom and the cultivated white button mushroom, which are economically important and widely consumed. Some Agaricales are destructive forest pathogens, such as the honey mushroom, which causes root rot in trees. Certain species, like those in the Amanita genus, are highly poisonous, emphasizing the need for careful identification. Some varieties of Agaricales have demonstrated bioluminescence, while others can be used as meat substitutes in vegetarian dishes.
3 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Agaricales, order of fungi in the class Agaricomycetes (phylum Basidiomycota, kingdom Fungi). One of the most diverse orders of the phylum Basidiomycota, Agaricales contains about 30 families, about 350 genera, and some 10,000 species. Traditionally, agarics were classified based on the presence of gills (thin sheets of spore-bearing cells, or basidia) and mushroom-shaped fruiting bodies. Today, agarics are classified based on genetic relatedness, and thus they may or may not have gills, and fruiting bodies may or may not be mushroom-shaped. In 2017, scientists discovered the oldest known fossilized Agaricales mushroom, Gondwanagaricites magnificus, which was unearthed in northeast Brazil and dates to the Aptian Stage of the Lower Cretaceous Series (125 million to 113 million years ago).

Agaricaceae

The best known family, Agaricaceae, contains fungi with mushroom fruiting bodies as well as many of the puffballs formerly placed in the family Lycoperdaceae. The taxonomy of the group has undergone heavy revision and contains about 85 genera and 1,340 species. The genus Agaricus, with more than 200 species, has several prominent members, including the edible meadow or field mushroom (A. campestris) and the cultivated white button mushroom (A. bisporus).

The inky caps (Coprinus) commonly grow in clumps at the sides of roads and at the base of old stumps. They are characterized by bullet-shaped caps, black spores (which make the gills appear black), and their habit of liquefying when mature, leaving an inky mass. The majority are edible, a few are somewhat poisonous, and some are mildly toxic only when alcoholic beverages are consumed with the mushrooms.

Mushrooms growing in forest. (vegetable; fungus; mushroom; macrofungi; epigeous)

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Stump puffballA cluster of stump puffballs (*Apioperdon pyriforme*, formerly *Lycoperdon pyriforme*), a ubiquitous fungus that grows on dead wood. When rain hits the fruiting structures, spores are released in a cloud.

Puffballs produce spores internally in a spherical fruiting body. Lycoperdon is a genus of 50 cosmopolitan species of small common puffballs. Calvatia contains about 35 species, including the giant puffball (C. gigantea), which can be as large as 120 cm (4 feet) across.

Other families and genera

The family Amanitaceae contains many species that are poisonous. The genus Amanita contains the destroying angels (A. bisporigera, A. ocreata, A. verna, and A. virosa) and the death cap (A. phalloides), which are among the deadliest mushrooms known.

The family Marasmiaceae contains 85 genera and nearly 1,600 species. The edible shiitake mushroom (Lentinula edodes) is one of the most economically important members of the group. Omphalotus contains several species capable of bioluminescence, including the poisonous jack-o-lantern (O. illudens). This orange-yellow fungus of woods and stumps resembles the unrelated, edible chanterelle (Cantharellus cibarius; order Cantharellales); the similarity emphasizes the need for careful identification by the mushroom gatherer. The small Marasmius oreades appears frequently in lawns (see fairy ring).

honey mushroomA cluster of honey mushrooms (*Armillaria mellea*).

Armillaria (family Physalacriaceae) is a genus of about 10 cosmopolitan species, which are some of the largest organisms in the world. The edible honey mushroom (A. mellea) causes root rot in trees and can be a destructive forest pathogen. Its yellowish clusters are often found at the bases of trees and stumps, and black shoestringlike fungal filaments can be found in the decaying wood.

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Among the shelf or bracket fungi growing from tree trunks is the oyster cap (Pleurotus ostreatus; family Pleurotaceae), so called because of its appearance. It is edible when young, but, as with most shelf and bracket fungi, it tends to become hard or leathery with age.

Scaly pholiotaScaly pholiota (*Pholiota squarrosa*)

Pholiota (family Strophariaceae) is found almost exclusively on wood. Some species are known to cause heartwood rot in trees. The cap and stalk of P. squarrosa, an edible mushroom, are covered with dense dry scales.

Tricholoma magnivelare (family Tricholomataceae), an edible mushroom with an interesting cinnamon flavour, is found in coastal forests of the northwestern United States. It is avidly collected by Japanese Americans, who call it matsutake after the closely related Japanese species T. matsutake. The genus also contains a number of inedible forms, including the very poisonous T. pardinum.

The Agaricales order also includes the families Schizophyllaceae and Fistulinaceae, which were formerly placed in the order Polyporales. Schizophyllum commune, a very common and widespread white mushroom, grows on decaying wood and has a cap with split gills that roll inward to cover the hymenium in dry weather. Fistulina hepatica, commonly called beefsteak fungus, is an edible species found in the autumn on oaks and other trees, on which it causes a stain called brown oak. Its common name is derived from its colour, which resembles that of raw beef.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.

Agaricales

Agaricaceae

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Other families and genera