07-08-2013, 12:58 PM
Some gilled mushrooms from the cold desert of Ladakh
ABSTRACT
Ladakh, a vast cold desert lying between 30º 15´ to 36º N latitude and 75º 15´ to 80º 15´ E longitude in the State of Jammu and Kashmir, India, witnesses an extreme climatic condition of low annual precipitation, low relative humidity, intense solar radiation and fluctuating temperature ranging from about –30ºC (winter) to +25ºC (summer). Despite its extremeness and barrenness, Ladakh constitutes an important home for the exuberant growth of diverse group of interesting wild mushrooms. The present communication deals with some gilled macrofungal species viz. Coprinus sps., Cortinarious sp., Hygrophorus sp. Agaricus sp., and Paneolus sp., collected from different locations of Ladakh for the first time. The macro- and micro-morphological details, habitat preference and edibility status of these species has been incorporated in the research paper.